The Hulk almost had a bigger role in the final battle of the 2018 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Avengers: Infinity War. While at Emerald City Comic Con, Mark Ruffalo talked about the original ending for the character in the film according to Popverse. At the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War, the Hulk fights Thanos (Josh Brolin) in a spaceship carrying Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Loki (Tom Hiddleston), and other Asgardians. However, the fight ends with Thanos defeating the Hulk, who is then sent back to Earth by Heimdall (Idris Elba).
Throughout the film, Bruce Banner is trying to get the Hulk to take over and help the rest of the MCU's heroes stop Thanos. However, the Hulk refuses, leaving Banner on his own. This includes the battle in Wakanda, where Banner fights in the Hulkbuster armor that Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) used against the Hulk in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron. However, Ruffalo shared that Hulk himself was originally going to join the battle in the film. "We were shooting Avengers: Infinity War and Hulk was supposed to come busting out of the Hulkbuster at the end and we shot that, we shot it four times and it wasn't working, and we realized—well, [Anthony and Joe Russo] realized—that we couldn't have Hulk save the day again, and we had to have Banner... lose," said Ruffalo. "That was the kind of thing where it was in the script one way for two years, and then when we came to shoot it, we decided it would be better if Hulk didn't show up, and Banner had to try to make friends with him to get him to show up."
Ruffalo also talked about the process of Marvel Studios continuing to rework the script for Avengers: Infinity War while filming. "That's one of the differences [with] any other movie you shoot, is that we're always kind of finding it as we go along, you have so many people, so many storylines, that you're trying to interweave together, and marvelously, beautifully," said Ruffalo. "What [Marvel is] really looking for is what's going to have the greatest impact for you guys."
What Happened to The Hulk After Avengers: Infinity War?
Banner ended up being one of the heroes who survived the Blip at the end of Avengers: Infinity War. In the follow-up film Avengers: Endgame, it was revealed that Banner had found a way to combine his intelligence while staying in the Hulk's body. Banner later joined the rest of the surviving Avengers in going back in time to retrieve the Infinity Stones to bring back those lost from the Blip. Banner himself was the one who wore the gauntlet and performed the snap, which brought back half of the life in the universe. After Avengers: Endgame, Banner (in his human form) was next seen in a post-credit scene for 2021's Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. He also mentored his cousin Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany) after she became a Hulk in the first episode of the Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. In the season finale, it was revealed that Banner has a son named Skaar, who is also a Hulk.
Avengers Infinity War is currently available to stream on Disney+. A trailer for the film can be watched below: