In news out of San Diego Comic-Con, Mark Ruffalo (Date Night, Shutter Island) has been named as Bruce Banner, aka The Incredible Hulk, in the long-awaited film version of The Avengers, Marvel Comics’ superhero team.
The announcement came as co-star Samuel L. Jackson, who plays Nick Fury, introduced the entire principal cast along with director Joss Whedon on stage Saturday in front of some 6,000 fans gathered for Marvel’s presentation. Also introduced were Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye and Clark Gregg as Agent Phil Coulson.
The Avengers, due in summer 2012, will be produced by Iron Man director Jon Favreau. It also stars Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Chris Evans as Captain America and Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow.
Earlier this month, Edward Norton, who played the green giant with anger management issues in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, was ruled out by Marvel brass as unsuitable for the ensemble cast, prompting the actor to defend his work on Facebook and offer apologies to fans that he would not be back in the role.
