What’s going on with the incredible Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Although his adversaries Red Hulk and The Leader (as well as his ex-girlfriend Betty Ross) are known to be in Captain America: Brave New World, it doesn’t seem that he’s going to show up in the movie – and if he does, it’s likely to just be a cameo. Last time we saw him, he was still in “Smart Hulk” mode but also equipped with a Hulk Inhibitor Device that allowed him to turn back into his regular human form. He served as a mentor to his cousin Jennifer Walters on She-Hulk, where he also introduced his son Skaar. We’re likely to see him again in Avengers: Doomsday (coming May 1, 2026) and Avengers: Secret Wars (coming May 7, 2027) – but now, there are RUMORS that Marvel may also be developing a World War Hulk movie (with George Miller in the running to direct it!) and hoping to have Hulk face off with Spider-Man and The Punisher in the fourth Spider-Man film!

The World War Hulk rumor began with a Production Weekly listing that claims Marvel plans to get the film into production by the end of 2025. World of Reel‘s sources told them that these plans are not “official” yet, but Marvel is indeed hoping to put World War Hulk on the fast track. They wrote, “Mark Ruffalo is set to come back in the titular role, and his character will have a very busy year as this coming February’s Captain America: Brave New World will set up World War Hulk for him, and a few months later, Thunderbolts* will be the ‘connecting branch’ for the character’s solo MCU movie.” They added that Chris Hemsworth set up a meeting between his Furiosa director George Miller and Marvel head Kevin Feige, putting the Mad Max franchise creator (who was attached to make a Justice League movie about 15 years ago) in the running to direct either World War Hulk or Thor 5. Miller has previously said he is an MCU fan and watches all of the movies. The World War Hulk comic follows the tragic death of Hulk’s wife. A more powerful Hulk then vows vengeance against the Illuminati and Earth’s heroes, and wreaks havoc against waves of Earth’s mightiest defenders, taking out a slew of targets on his chaotic path.

Industry scoopers Jeff Sneider and John Rocha discussed the World War Hulk / George Miller rumor on their podcast The Hot Mic, and along the way, Rocha dropped a rumor of his own: “From what I hear from a very strong source in the business, the plan for the new Spider-Man movie was Spider-Man fighting the Hulk with the Punisher. So it was going to be ground-based, but he was gonna fight the Hulk because Marvel wants to move away from the intelligent Hulk we saw in the Avengers movies and make him much more of the brutish Hulk, the violent Hulk, the rage Hulk. That seems to be the approach they want to go in.” Rocha doesn’t know if Spider-Man 4 has changed, but that was apparently the plan for it at some point.

We know that Spider-Man 4 is on track for a July 24, 2026 release date, with Tom Holland back as the title character, but nothing is known for sure about the plot. There have been rumors about a Daredevil team-up and a Venom crossover, there have even been rumblings about Mephisto (who is expected to make his MCU debut in the Disney+ series Ironheart, which is set to premiere on June 24, 2025)… but Sneider felt the Hulk / Punisher rumor has a ring of truth to it, because the deal Marvel and Sony have for producing these Spider-Man movies is that Marvel has to have at least one of their other marquee characters appear in each movie. This is why Iron Man was in Spider-Man: Homecoming, Nick Fury in Spider-Man: Far from Home, and Doctor Strange in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Mephisto may not be popular enough to live up to the requirement, but Hulk certainly is, and the Punisher would be a nice added bonus.

Played by Jon Bernthal, The Punisher will be appearing in the Disney+ series Daredevil: Born Again, which premiers on March 4, 2025. There’s a rumor that he might be getting his own show again, and Marvel Head of Television and Streaming Brad Winderbaum has said there’s “absolutely a future for him in the MCU.” So maybe he will be showing up in Spider-Man 4. It would be fitting – after all, the character was introduced in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man #129.

Would you like to see George Miller direct World War Hulk? (And/or Thor 5?) Would you like to see Spider-Man and The Punisher team up to fight Hulk in Spider-Man 4? Share your thoughts on these rumors by leaving a comment below.

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