Edward Norton Makes Mokre Jokes About Marvel Studios' Incredible Hulk

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Edward Norton Took More Jabs At Marvel During Bruce Willis Roast

By Tom Chapman

Published Jul 30, 2018

Former Marvel Cinematic Universe star Edward Norton fired more volleys about 2008's The Incredible Hulk during The Comedy Central Roast of Bruce Willis.

Edward Norton is once again showing why he is a mean, green, fighting machine as he threw more shade at Marvel Studios during The Comedy Central Roast of Bruce Willis.

Although Mark Ruffalo now plays Bruce Banner and his alter ego the Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the role previously belonged to Norton, who starred in Louis Leterrier's 2008 film The Incredible Hulk.

The Hollywood Reporter shared an excerpt from Willis' roast where Norton quipped, "I tried to be like you," before clarifying, "I did a big action movie called The Incredible Hulk. You know what went wrong? I wanted a better script."

With the audience containing such Hollywood stars as Willis, Demi Moore and Cybill Shepherd, Norton also took aim at The Dark Knight Rises star Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Reflecting on Leterrier's movie, he joked, "I thought we should try to make one Marvel movie that was as good as the worst Chris Nolan movie, but what the hell was I thinking."

Norton has a long history of dispute with the MCU over playing Hulk, but at least he rolled with the punches at the Comedy Central roast. Jibes about his short-lived tenure as the Emerald Giant were the theme of the evening as the 48-year-old tried to laugh them off.

Iron Man kick-started the MCU a month before the release of The Incredible Hulk, but while the likes of Robert Downey Jr. went on to lead Phase One alongside other stars like Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans, Norton became the fall guy for The Incredible Hulk after behind-the-scenes tensions regarding the script and the theatrical cut. Although there were once plans for a sequel, Norton was replaced with Ruffalo for The Avengers.

Although The Incredible Hulk actor William Hurt has continued his role as Thaddeus Ross, other characters like Tim Roth's Abomination, Tim Blake Nelson's Samuel Sterns and Liv Tyler's Betty Ross have faded into the ranks of forgotten MCU characters.

The Hulk again saw a rise in popularity with his role in Taika Waititi's Thor: Ragnarok. Ruffalo is set to continue his role as Banner/Hulk next year in Avengers 4.