Thor and Hulk just fought again in Disney+'s Marvel Zombies, and the winner will surprise fans. In recent years, the MCU has brought in many contenders for its strongest superhero, such as Captain Marvel, Scarlet Witch, Ikaris, and Adam Warlock. But when the Avengers first assembled in 2012, there were only two clear rivals for the title: Mark Ruffalo's Hulk and Chris Hemsworth's Thor.
The titans battled aboard a Hellicarrier in The Avengers, only ending when the mind-controlled Hulk was launched down to ground level. Their rematch came in Thor: Ragnarok in the Grandmaster's arena on Sakaar, which culminated with the God of Thunder being knocked unconscious by the Hulk.
Both Thor and Hulk have returned in Marvel Zombies, each assuming limited screentime in the four-episode post-apocalyptic series, but ultimately playing pivotal roles in Episode 4 as the series ended with an epic rematch.
Just as he was on Earth-616, this Thor was left broken after failing to defeat Thanos and only had his heroic spark reignited when Scarlet Witch brought the zombie plague to New Asgard. Ultimately, the God of Thunder sacrificed himself so the other heroes could escape, only to be defeated and zombified by Wanda.
Meanwhile, in the Marvel Zombies universe, Bruce Banner was transformed into the Infinity Hulk, absorbing the power of all six Infinity Stones, not only harnessing its energy but also guarding the Infinity Storm from anyone who comes near.
This all built toward Episode 4's epic face-off with a Zombie Thor, boosted with Scarlet Witch's chaos magic powers, taking on the Infinity Hulk as Wanda sought to harness the power of the Infinity Stones and heal the world.
Zombie Thor and Infinity Hulk traded blows in Marvel Zombies, each landing a series of devastating plows and taking advantage of their unique, beyond god-tier powers that seem unlikely to ever appear on Earth-616.
The God of Thunder clearly acquired some new powers from Scarlet Witch, as he unleashed a dragonbreath of Chaos Magic energy upon the Infinity Hulk.
However, that was only enough to stun the cosmic-infused gamma monster, who launched his opponent into the skies, setting up a brutal final blow.
In one of Marvel Zombies' eight most brutal R-rated moments, Infinity Hulk landed on Zombie Thor from the skies and violently crushed his skull.
As Hulk and Thor's previous battles in The Avengers and Ragnarok mostly saw the gamma-infused hero taking the upper hand, this leaves Bruce Banner three for three in taking down the God of Thunder in the MCU.
Despite her zombie champion being defeated, the Red Queen managed to sneak up on a distracted Infinity Hulk to absorb his cosmic powers. That said, she still needed Kamala Khan's help to complete her true villainous plan, which she ultimately managed to get to usher in her new Hex world.
As such, despite this being a rematch between Thor and Hulk (albeit with some crazy upgrades), the true victor in the battle was Wanda Maximoff. That said, the story isn't done yet as Marvel Zombies' cliffhanger ending teased a second season, which looks likely to happen after Season 1's surprising viewership.
Marvel Zombies is a bloody sea of hero-on-hero battles, but the Zombie Captain Marvel vs. Ikaris fight left a particular mark on audiences. Their devastating conflict created a whole landmark in the Valley of the Broken Gods, a region of Pennsylvania that had been torn apart by the cosmic heroes' battle.
The MCU's Original Avengers Actors Might Be Reuniting in Phase 6
While Chris Hemsworth didn't reprise Thor for Marvel Zombies, he will be back next year in Avengers: Doomsday, where he is expected to play a major role.
Meanwhile, Mark Ruffalo will return as Bruce Banner in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, bringing back the Savage Hulk "scarier than ever before." It's unclear whether Ruffalo will also be back for Doomsday or Secret Wars, but it seems likely, depending on what happens in Spider-Man 4.
Hulk and Thor make up two-thirds of the active original Avengers alongside Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye, but fans think Chris Evans' Steve Rogers will be joining them for Doomsday to fight Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom.
Sadly, if Renner and Ruffalo return for Avengers 5 as has been rumored, Scarlett Johansson would be the only actress from the original six to swerve Doomsday after her Black Widow was killed off in Endgame.
