The Incredible Hulk has had quite the journey in the MCU. Spending his first appearance being played by Fight Club's Edward Norton, the role was swiftly recast with Mark Ruffalo when 2012's The Avengers came around. And now, Dr. Bruce Banner will be mentoring his similarly gamma-powered cousin, Jennifer Walters in Marvel Studios' upcoming streaming show She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
Typically, when a new MCU series or movie is added to Disney+, the streaming service launches a new episode of Marvel Studios: Legends. These videos serve as short-form recaps of everything a specific character has been up to leading into their newest adventure. For example, a week before Hawkeye premiered in late 2021, a Legends episode was released focusing on Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton, showing footage from all of his previous appearances in films like Thor and Avengers: Age of Ultron.
It would seem that with the She-Hulk series imminent, Marvel is holding to the trend.
Bruce Banner Receives His Own Legends Episode
According to a new graphic posted by the official Twitter account for Disney+ in Italy, the streamer will drop an all-new episode of Marvel Studios Legends on Wednesday, August 10. This particular episode is titled "Bruce Banner" and will take viewers through most, if not all, of the Hulk's MCU appearances ahead of She-Hulk's premiere on Thursday, August 18. Check out the graphic below:
Will All of Banner's Story Be Included?
The big question here is that if Disney+ intends to catch audiences up on Bruce's and the Hulk's exploits in the MCU, will that include 2008's The Incredible Hulk?
It's difficult to say. As mentioned above, in that movie, Banner was portrayed by Edward Norton who has since been replaced with Mark Ruffalo in all subsequent projects that feature the character. Marvel typically doesn't like to acknowledge Norton in any way, shape, or form in its various promotional videos. They have, however, shown a willingness to use footage from the film that features the Hulk himself, since he's an entirely CGI character.
With She-Hulk: Attorney at Law set to feature Incredible Hulk's villain, the Abomination, in a sizable capacity, one would think that Marvel will elect to utilize scenes from the movie that show the final battle between Hulk and Abomination, as both characters were digitally created and they wouldn't actually need to show Norton's face on-screen.
It's also worth noting that The Incredible Hulk has been added to Disney+ in some international regions, so maybe the platform will be more willing to permit footage from the film in the Legends episode.
Bruce's role in She-Hulk appears to be very significant. Jen gets her powers from accidentally taking in some of his blood during a car accident and it looks like Bruce takes it upon himself to train her in the ways of the Hulk. Most of what fans have glimpsed of Banner in the trailers and promos have the character on a tropical island or in a laboratory, so it will be interesting to see if he teams up with Jennifer during the show's final battle or if he stays behind.
Marvel Studios' She-Hulk: Attorney at Law will land on Disney+ on Thursday, August 18.
