One of Marvel's most celebrated and beloved characters, the Incredible Hulk is a powerhouse of brute strength and financial profitability. And, thanks to that latter part, he's been featured in quite a few Marvel Cinematic Universe adventures (though only one was a solo film).
And, in each of those films (including the one Hulk film that came out pre-MCU), scientist Bruce Banner's unwanted alter ego gets to bash some stuff up. But that's not all, as he also gets a few good lines here and there (well, mostly Bruce and less so Hulk). What follows are the best of the best when it comes to scenes in films that feature the Incredible Hulk. For the sake of variety, not all of them involve literal smashing, but they are all smashing in the British sense of the word.
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10 I See This As An Absolute Win — Avengers: Endgame (2019)
In Avengers: Endgame, Bruce Banner and Hulk have finally merged in full. And, as a result, he doesn't really get many "Hulking out" moments. But, the gang's second battle against Thanos does have a few solid jokes for the character early in its runtime.
What Makes It Great?
First, there's a group of kids asking him for an autograph, only to then reject Ant-Man's (followed by Hulk giving typical adult advice about staying in school). Then, there's the film's time-traveling experiment, which turns Ant-Man into a baby only for Banner to call the eventually success an "absolute win!"
9 Hulk vs. Hulkbuster — Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Avengers: Age of Ultron may be the most divisive of the four team-up films, but it certainly has its merits. For one, it introduced Wanda Maximoff and, two, some of its action sequences are absolute dynamite. That even if the falling of Sokovia has gone on to be controversal both in and out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (though both real humans and characters had the same point: Did the Avengers cause more destruction than they prevented?).
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What Makes It Great?
The cream of the crop when it comes to Avengers: Age of Ultron's action sequences is undoubtedly the Johannesburg set-piece. Stark's Hulkbuster armor hasn't made many appearances throughout the MCU, but this is where it was introduced and this is where it was used best. Having the Hulk fight the one piece of tech built to stop him is about as bone-crunching as an action sequence can get.
8 Son, You've Got A Condition — The Avengers (2012)
The late, great Harry Dean Stanton was one of Hollywood's absolute gold standard treasures. Not one of his performances was anything short of sublime. And, thanks to 2012's The Avengers, he'll always be a part of the MCU, even if his is a small part.
Related: MCU: 7 Celebrities Who Made Cameo Appearances as Themselves in the Franchise
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What Makes It Great?
After Hulk is ejected from the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, he lands in the middle of an abandoned, run-down building. There he finds a worker in a gray suit, flabbergasted by the titan that's just fallen from the sky and turned into a flesh-and-blood human being. Or, as Stanton's character puts Hulk's crash: he was "big and green and buck-ass nude."
7 Desert Battle — Hulk (2003)
For the most part, Ang Lee's Hulk is both ambitious and utterly broken. The performances are off, the father-son tension never really lands like it's obviously intended to, and the narrative as a whole is ridiculously unfocused. But, there's that pesky ambition, and one must give Lee credit for trying something new in the subgenre, especially so early in its burgeoning popularity.
What Makes It Great?
Admittedly, Hulk isn't Lee's focus so much as Bruce Banner. But, Hulk does get a moment or two to shine. For instance, hopping around San Diego or, before that, the film's best action sequence: Colonel Ross sends in a tank brigade to subdue Hulk, but he makes short work of them, even ripping one in half and throwing the cannon hundreds of feet through the air.
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6 General Ross' Forces vs. Hulk in Rio de Janeiro — The Incredible Hulk (2008)
The scantly-lit action sequence that culminates The Incredible Hulk's first act is solid, entertaining, intense, and gives the audience a sense of the title character's size before they even see him in full. In other words, for a solo Hulk reboot film, it's an opening action sequence that does its job. But, not much more. It's a serviceable re-introduction to the big green meanie, but it's nothing more than a few machine gun-toting soldiers taking on something much more formidable than themselves. Naturally, things would only get more exciting once the soldiers' head honcho orders in heavy artillery to take on his daughter's ex.
What Makes It Great?
While it was only the opening in the factory-set action set piece, there's still much merit to concealing the monster until later on. And that in and of itself makes the opening sequence exactly what it should be. Louis Leterrier knew what he was doing with The Incredible Hulk, and it's sad he hasn't been given another shot at a more well-rounded and in-universe MCU installment.
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5 Hulk vs. Abomination — The Incredible Hulk (2008)
The one disappointing aspect of The Incredible Hulk's final fight is that Tim Roth isn't in it. Sure, his character is, but a gray CGI monster isn't a sublime substitute for A-level acting.
What Makes It Great?
Yet, even still, the Harlem fight carries a lot of weight, much more so than many action sequences of MCU films that would follow. This is because the fight is fairly vicious, both characters are actively trying to kill one another, and they're doing it with their brawn and fists. It's a brutal bash, and it's more effective than any one of the city-dropping-down-on-a-bigger-city 3rd act set pieces that would follow in The Incredible Hulk's wake.
4 General Ross' Forces vs. Hulk on Culver University's Campus — The Incredible Hulk (2008)
The best action sequence in The Incredible Hulk isn't the final one (though it is a close call), it's the middle one. There's something relatively small-scale about a fight on a college campus that makes the sequence feel like a definitive part of Phase 1, even if the film's exact version of the Hulk didn't stick around for the long haul. Watching him burst his way out of a glassed-in walkway then storm through expensive trucks is a blast.
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What Makes It Great?
The real treat of the whole 10-minute-or-so sequence is the arrogance that fuels Emil Blonsky, and it's the two of them (Blonsky and Hulk) who conclude the action sequence. And, when Hulk kicks Blonsky about one hundred feet through the air until he hits a tree with a thud, it's charmingly obvious the villain isn't out of the picture yet.
3 I'm Always Angry — The Avengers (2012)
The battle of New York is the most important event of the MCU not called "The Blip." But, there's a pretty darn good chance the title characters in The Avengers wouldn't have conquered Loki's Chitauri army without the assistance of one particularly incredible member.
What Makes It Great?
The Avengers finds Bruce Banner after the events of The Incredible Hulk. In other words, right after he's been found by Colonel Ross, his men, and, eventually, the Abomination. He's pulled from his isolation by Black Widow, forced onto a quinjet, and dropped to the ground. Then, after another briefer disappearance, he shows up in New York and tells his peers the secret to his instant transformation: he's always angry.
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2 Hulk vs. Thor — Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
There are a couple of really solid Hulk moments in Thor: Ragnarok, and the vast majority of them very strongly mix comedy and action. And, while the moment where Banner drops from Valkyrie's ship in an epic way only to land on the Rainbrow Bridge not as Hulk but still Banner is a winner, there's another scene that's tops it. Specifically, the gladiator battle.
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What Makes It Great?
It's arguably Ragnarok's best scene. And, at the very least, it's the funniest and most exciting. For one, the fight choreography between the two characters really allows the audience to feel their literal weight, but there are also two of the film's best jokes. First is when Thor exclaims that Hulk is "a friend from work" (a moment made even sweeter by the fact that the line came from a Make-A-Wish Foundation child visiting the set), and the second comes just after, when the viewer gets a shot of Loki's horror-stricken face upon learning the identity of the Grandmaster's great champion.
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1 Smashing Loki — The Avengers (2012)
If there was one moment throughout the 2012 summer movie season that made people jump from their seats and cheer, it was this one. After the battle of New York has mostly concluded, Loki finds himself cornered by Thor in Stark Tower. And, shortly after this realization, he gets the thrashing of his godly life.
What Makes It Great?
There's an immediacy to Hulk's smashing Loki on concrete that lends the scene incredible effectiveness. No matter how many times one sees this big green superhero repeatedly smash the smarmy, murderous pseudo-god against concrete, it is an absolute joy that only blockbuster cinema can provide.