Avengers star Mark Ruffalo -- who has played Bruce Banner/Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2012 -- recently revealed that Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige nearly walked away from the company due to Marvel Entertainment Chairman and former CEO Ike Perlmutter's opposition to a more diverse on-screen product.

During an interview with The Independent, it was brought up that Marvel Studios had been criticized for a lack of LGBTQ+ representation in its films. In response to this Ruffalo told an anecdote pertaining to a conversation he had with Feige, presumably around 2012. According to Ruffalo, Feige was preparing to have a talk with Disney (Marvel's owner) about why the franchise had no female-led superhero movies.

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"When we did the first Avengers, Kevin Feige told me, 'Listen, I might not be here tomorrow,'" Ruffalo recalls. "And he’s like, 'Ike [Isaac Perlmutter, Disney’s largest shareholder at the time] does not believe that anyone will go to a female-starring superhero movie. So if I am still here tomorrow, you will know that I won that battle.'" Ruffalo describes this as a major turning point for Marvel Studios.

"Because Kevin wanted black superheroes, women superheroes, LGBT superheroes," the actor continued. "He changed the whole Marvel universe. We now have a gay superhero on the way, we have black superheroes, we have female superheroes -- Scarlett Johansson has her movie coming out, we have Captain Marvel, they are doing She-Hulk next. No other studio is being that inclusive on that level. They have to, though. This is the fucking world."

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Feige's involvement in films based on Marvel comic books dates all the way back to 2000's X-Men. He became President of Marvel Studios in 2007, with the MCU launching one year later with the release of Iron Man. Feige has since produced every single one of the franchise's films. The producer expanded his role this past October, becoming the Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment.