Since making his debut in 1962, The Incredible Hulk has been one of Marvel Comics’ most enduring, and most iconic characters. The Hulk has appeared in comics, in toy form, and in computer games, and has even starred in a series of live-action movies and TV shows.
But what are all of the Hulk’s live-action movie and TV show appearances and is there a particular viewing order? It seems difficult to keep track of the Hulk sometimes, so is there a guide?
Well, don’t worry, because in this post, I am putting the spotlight on Marvel’s Jade Giant. From his live-action television series during the 1970s (and associated TV movies), through to his appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, all of the Hulk’s major appearances are coverd.
Want to watch the Hulk in action? Then keep reading for all the details.
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The Incredible Hulk (1977 – 1990)
OK, let’s kick things off with the Hulk’s first live-action adaptation: The Incredible Hulk. This is a television show that most people (of a certain age) are familiar with, because it was a huge hit in the late 1970s.
At the time, TV station CBS was keen on developing a show based on the Hulk. To help get the potential series off the ground, the network developed two TV pilots to gauge interest.
The first pilot – titled The Incredible Hulk – hit television screens in 1977 and introduced audiences to Dr. David Banner (as played by Bill Bixby), who was a scientist who accidentally transformed himself into a creature known as the Hulk (Lou Ferrigno). The second pilot – initially titled The Return of the Incredible Hulk (later re-titled A Death in the Family) – aired three weeks later and furthered Banner’s story.
The two TV ‘movie’ pilots were successful enough to prove to CBS the Hulk had legs and soon a television show followed, with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno remaining on board as the leads. That show would run for five seasons, concluding in 1982.
Due to continued interest in the show after its conclusion, a series of TV movies followed between 1988 and 1990. The first, The Incredible Hulk Returns, featured Thor; the second, The Trial of the Incredible Hulk featured Daredevil and Kingpin; while the third, The Death of the Incredible Hulk concluded the journey and put a definitive end to the story.
If you’re interested in watching the show and the movies, it’s fairly easy to do. The television series (which includes the two pilot films) can be watched on DVD, Blu-ray, or streaming, and is in regular rotation through TV reruns, while the three sequel movies are also available on home video and regularly pop up on television.
Here’s what you need to watch:
- The Incredible Hulk: Season One (1977 – 1978)
- The Incredible Hulk: Season Two (1978 – 1979)
- The Incredible Hulk: Season Three (1979 – 1980)
- The Incredible Hulk: Season Four (1980 – 1981)
- The Incredible Hulk: Season Five (1981 – 1982)
- The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988)
- The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (1989)
- The Death of the Incredible Hulk (1990)
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Hulk (2003)
Following the release of The Death of the Incredible Hulk, thirteen years would pass before the Hulk would reappear in live-action. When he made his next appearance it was via the comic book melodrama, Hulk.
Directed by Ang Lee, Hulk was the first in what was hoped to be a run of Hulk films featuring Eric Bana in the role of Bruce Banner. However, despite a lot of interest in the character and moderate success at the box office, Hulk received a lukewarm response from critics and audiences alike.
The reason for its muted response? The film lacked enough action and adventure for general audiences; the overall tone and direction was low-key and/or abstract; and it was nothing like the 1970s television show, which is what general audiences seemed to want.
As such, Hulk was deemed a bit of a failure. So, instead of pressing ahead, Universal Pictures, the studio which owned the movie rights to the character, decided to have a rethink before making its next move.
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The Marvel Cinematic Universe (2008 onward)
With Universal Pictures keen to press ahead with another Hulk film, a decision was made to initiate a soft-reboot of the film series. Universal figured that audiences wanted to see more Hulk, they just didn’t want to see any more of the 2003 version of Hulk, so a reset was required.
However, rather than go it alone, this time around the studio teamed up with Marvel Studios, who were a new studio in the arena. Marvel Studios were in the process of creating the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and they wanted to include the Hulk.
So, in 2008, Universal and co-producer Marvel Studios released The Incredible Hulk – a reboot of the Hulk series. In this movie, Edward Norton took on the role of Bruce Banner, for what was essentially a standalone story, with minor connections to the wider MCU.
The film wasn’t a huge hit, but it gave the Hulk a foothold in the MCU. The idea was for the character to then reappear in future films, either as a co-player in team-up movies or via cameos and guest appearances.
And Banner/Hulk did reappear. However, for his next appearance in 2012’s team-up movie, The Avengers, Mark Ruffalo replaced Edward Norton, due to Norton and Marvel falling out over ‘creative differences’.
Following on from The Avengers, Ruffalo reprised the role of Banner/Hulk in a very brief cameo in Iron Man 3 (2013), before receiving a more substantial part in Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015). An appearance in the ‘short’ film, Team Thor, followed in 2016, before he appeared again in much larger roles in Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and Avengers: Infinity War (2018).
Ruffalo then popped up in another brief cameo in 2019’s Captain Marvel, before taking a role in Avengers: Endgame (2019). This was followed in 2021 by another brief cameo in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021).
From here Ruffalo voiced Banner/Hulk in two episodes of 2021’s What If?, before appearing in three episodes of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law in 2022. More episodes of What If? followed in 2023 and 2024, before Ruffalo appeared alongside Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Brand New Day in 2026.
Should you wish to follow the Hulk’s journey through the MCU, via main appearances and cameos, then follow this list:
- The Incredible Hulk (2008) – Main appearance
- The Avengers (2012) – Main appearance
- Iron Man 3 (2013) – Cameo
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) – Main appearance
- Team Thor (2016) – Cameo
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017) – Main appearance
- Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – Main appearance
- Captain Marvel (2019) – Cameo
- Avengers: Endgame (2019) – Main appearance
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) – Cameo
- What If? Season One – Episode 3: What If… The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes? (2021) – Main appearance
- What If? Season One – Episode 5: What If… Zombies? (2021) – Main appearance
- She-Hulk: Attorney at Law – Episode 1: A Normal Amount of Rage (2022) – Guest appearance
- She-Hulk: Attorney at Law – Episode 2: Superhuman Law (2022) – Guest appearance
- She-Hulk: Attorney at Law – Episode 3: Whose Show is This? (2022) – Guest appearance
- What If? Season Two – Episode 3: What If… Happy Hogan Saved Christmas? (2023) – Main appearance
- What If? Season Two – Episode 8: What If… The Avengers Assembled in 1602? (2023) – Main appearance
- What If? Season Three – Episode 1: What If… The Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers? (2024) – Main appearance
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026) – Main appearance
Please note: Where Banner/Hulk appears in cameo appearances, these are mostly very, very brief roles, usually reserved for post credit scenes.
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Thank you for stopping by It’s A Stampede! to read this post about the Hulk’s appearances in movies and television shows (including his inclusion in the MCU). For more posts be sure to check out the recommended reads below.
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