Ahead of his return as Emil Blonsky/Abomination in Marvel Studios' She-Hulk series, Tim Roth has revealed he had an amusing reason for joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe: he wanted to embarrass his kids.
"I did The Incredible Hulk [playing Emil Blonsky, aka Abomination] years ago, just because I thought my kids would be embarrassed by it. I did it for them and I really enjoyed making it," Roth told The Hollywood Reporter. "So when they came to me and said: 'We’re adapting the She-Hulk thing. Can you come back as that character again?' I was like, sure. It should be fun. I was very surprised though because it was difficult at first. It was only when Mark Ruffalo came in to shoot his stuff [reprising his role as Bruce Banner] that I went: 'Oh, that’s how you do it! With a sense of humor!'"
Roth only recently reprised his role as Abomination for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which marked the character's first appearance in the MCU since his showdown with Bruce Banner/Hulk in the climax to 2008's The Incredible Hulk. The film has Abomination facing off against the sorcerer Wong in a seedy nightclub visited by Shang-Chi and his friend Katy.
According to Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton, the decision to pit Wong against Abomination was far from random. "Abomination was just a result of twenty-to-thirty what-ifs," said Cretton in a past interview. "And then we landed on a pairing that felt really great, but it was also a pairing that made sense to what's happening in the [MCU] around the time of our movie. So there are definite links happening that you will pick up on if you're involved with everything else that's happening in the MCU."
It appears viewers will have to wait until She-Hulk premieres to learn what the future holds for Abomination in the MCU. Tatiana Maslany stars as Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk on the show, with Ginger Gonzaga, Renée Elise Goldsberry and Jameela Jamil among those joining Roth and Ruffalo in the supporting cast.
She-Hulk is scheduled to begin streaming on Disney+ in 2022. As for Abomination's opponent Wong, he will return to the live-action side of the MCU later this year when Spider-Man: No Way Home arrives on Dec. 17.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter