Concept art has revealed that Hulk almost had a striking new look in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. The return of MCU star Mark Ruffalo in the fourth Tom Holland Spider-Man outing was kept under wraps throughout production until trailers finally confirmed Bruce Banner's involvement in the sequel. While never leading his own film, Ruffalo has been a constant throughout the MCU, showing up for adventures with Thor, She-Hulk, and this year, Spider-Man.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day - The Art Of The Movie has shown some unique looks that were considered for the Hulk in the Phase 6 film. Throughout his time in the MCU, the Hulk has had several variations of his typical green look. After 2008's The Incredible Hulk with Edward Norton, the Hulk's facial model shifted to mirror Ruffalo's in the new role. Ruffalo has played the mean green fighting machine in both his savage and smart Hulk iterations, but Spider-Man: Brand New Day was considering bringing something new to the table.
One of the concept art designs in the artbook for Ruffalo's character depicted the Hulk with a beard. While in Hulk form, the character has previously been shown with light stubble or clean-shaven, but never with significant facial hair like in this design.
While Spider-Man: Brand New Day ultimately didn't use the bearded option, this would've marked the first time ever that Hulk had been depicted with a beard in the MCU.
Generally, the Hulk's facial design will mirror that of Banner's human form in whichever project he's in. With Spider-Man: Brand New Day taking place roughly four years after Spider-Man: No Way Home, which was a similar point on the timeline to when audiences last saw Ruffalo in She-Hulk, depicting Bruce Banner with a beard might have been a logical choice to underscore the passage of time. But ultimately, both halves of Banner appeared clean-shaven in the movie.
Hulk's design in the fourth Spider-Man film broke boundaries for the character, as he grew to his largest and most monstrous form to date after spending years locked away due to Bruce Banner's inhibitor.
Several other images from Spider-Man: Brand New Day - The Art Of The Movie depict the Hulk in various ways. After several years as Smart Hulk following Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Brand New Day saw the return of Bruce Banner in his human form.
Smart Hulk makes a brief appearance in the film and is the form Banner initially transitions into after his inhibitor is removed. However, this version of Hulk is short-lived after Jean Grey's mind control snaps something within Banner's mind, bringing out an even mightier Savage Hulk from within.
For some time, fans theorized whether Banner might transform into the Gray Hulk, another alter ego of the Hulk within Banner in the comics, who is more cunning and self-serving. However, that is not what transpired, as Spider-Man: Brand New Day ultimately opted to use a larger, more dangerous iteration of the Savage Hulk to fight Spider-Man instead.
The concept art of Savage Hulk for Spider-Man: Brand New Day consistently looks less like Ruffalo's facial model, further instilling that this is intentionally a more monstrous version of Hulk that is even more estranged from Banner's morality and control.
The climactic fight between Spider-Man and the Hulk takes place in the Department of Damage Control building in New York, when Jean Grey takes control of Banner's mind, forces his transformation, and then uses the Hulk to distract Spider-Man. At this point, Spider-Man has also called on help from his sometimes ally, The Punisher (Jon Bernthal), who gets sucked into the fight alongside Spider-Man against the Hulk.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day was released in theaters on July 31. Tom Holland, Mark Ruffalo, Sadie Sink, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, and Jon Bernthal star in the film directed by Destin Daniel Cretton.
What's Next For Hulk After Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
The Hulk is one of the few original Avengers team members who have continued to play an active role in the MCU throughout the Multiverse Saga. Now that Spider-Man: Brand New Day has brought the character back into the spotlight in a big way, Ruffalo's character is poised for an important arc heading into the next two Avengers films.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day ended with Banner returning to his human form and being carted away under lock and key after his monstrous episode. The new post-credit scene of Avengers: Endgame Encore then confirmed that Banner had self-exiled himself by locking himself in a bunker underground. But the bunker wasn't as impenetrable as it may have seemed, as Banner receives a visit from Doctor Doom, who recruits him for his plans, setting up Banner and Hulk's involvement in Avengers: Doomsday.
It seems that Ruffalo still has a couple more MCU projects secured as the Hulk, with an arc in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars now looking likely, but how much that will extend into the next saga after the Multiverse Saga remains to be seen. Ruffalo has a good track record of playing a supporting role as Banner/Hulk in other characters' solo stories, even if not in his own headlining film, which opens many doors for him to appear again, though many still hope that a solo Hulk film may be on the table in the future.
