Mark Ruffalo Talks STAR WARS, Black Widow Debacle, And She-Hulk

Mark Ruffalo, who stars as The Hulk/Dr. Bruce Banner in Avengers: Age of Ultron, participated in a Reddit AMA and was asked who his top choice would be for Banner’s cousin Jennifer Walters, also known as She-Hulk.

“Oh wow, that’s pretty crazy. Well I think Zoe Saldana would be a great She Hulk,” Ruffalo replied. “It’d be nice to see someone like her join the Avengers. Or someone quiet and demure like Emma Stone would be nice. But it would be up to the powers that be.”

It is virtually impossible for his Infinitely Polar Bear co-star to play She-Hulk since Saldana already plays the green-skinned Gamora (Guardians of the Galaxy) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Keep in mind, Ruffalo is just thinking about who he thinks is the best choice – regardless of logic.

Emma Stone (The Amazing Spider-Man) is a fun choice. Yes, she too has already been in two Marvel films but that was pre-Sony-Marvel deal. So her Gwen Stacy was never a part of the MCU. She’s fair game to be She-Hulk.

She-Hulk was created by Stan Lee and John Buscema and first appeared in She-Hulk #1 (February 1980). When Jennifer Walters was seriously injured in an accident her cousin Bruce gave her a blood transfusion that ended up infusing her with a milder version of his Hulk-like powers. She got his strength, but kept her wits.

Ruffalo recently worked with Star Wars: Episode VIII director Rian Johnson on the film Brothers Bloom. When asked during the same Reddit AMA what it was like working with Johnson, Ruffalo dropped a little hint that he’d like a place in Johnson’s Star Wars:

Loved working with Rian. He is an incredibly gifted film maker and a really fine man. I hope he has a place for me in the new StarWars. Knock knock, Rian.

The comment comes off as a good nature ribbing, so fans probably shoudn’t take it as anything more that. Then again, if it came to pass, Ruffalo in Star Wars may be the closest thing we ever get to a Planet Hulk movie.

Mark Ruffalo, the actor who plays Banner in the film, has already praised Whedon’s work and expressed a different view of Bruce and Natasha’s relationship. During yet again the same AMA on Reddit, Ruffalo went into a much more detailed defense of the Age of Ultron director:

I think it’s sad. Because I know how Joss feels about women, and I know that he’s made it a point to create strong female characters. I think part of the problem is that people are frustrated that they want to see more women, doing more things, in superhero movies, and because we don’t have as many women as we should yet, they’re very, very sensitive to every single storyline that comes up right now. But I think what’s beautiful about what Joss did with Black Widow – I don’t think he makes her any weaker, he just brings this idea of love to a superhero, and I think that’s beautiful.
If anything, Black Widow is much stronger than Banner. She protects him. She does her job, and basically they begin to have a relationship as friends, and I think it’s a misplaced anger. I think that what people might really be upset about is the fact that we need more superhuman women. The guys can do anything, they can have love affairs, they can be weak or strong and nobody raises an eyebrow. But when we do that with a woman, because there are so few storylines for women, we become hyper-critical of every single move that we make because there’s not much else to compare it to.
So I know Joss really well. I know what his values are. And I think it’s sad, because in a lot of ways, there haven’t been as many champions in this universe as Joss isand will continue to be. And I know it hurts him. I know it’s heavy on him. And the guy’s one of the sweetest, best guys, and I know him – as far as any man can be a champion for women, he is that.
So it’s been a little disheartening.
But I also see how much people love that aspect of it. There’s an equal amount of people who find the love interest between Banner and Black Widow to be a big standout. And it’s very satisfying to people. So it’s a movie. People are going to have their opinions. And that’s actually a great thing. The fact that this is a debate that’s coming out of this movie is probably a positive thing.
I just don’t think that people should get personal with Joss, because he really is – of anyone – an advocate for women. He’s a deeply committed feminist.

Whedon left Twitter amidst a the barrage of criticism, though he clarified that he was by no means driven away by any group of people with any particular point of view, but left to better focus on his next writing project. It’s also worth noting that the Banner relationship is only one of the sticking points fans have had with Black Widow’s characterization in Age of Ultron, and not the entirety of it.

STAR WARS ROGUE ONE Plot Details, Chronology, And More Revealed

The upcoming “Star Wars” standalone film, “Rogue One,” will follow a group trying to steal the Death Star plans, it was revealed at Sunday’s Star Wars Celebration, which also showed a special teaser for the upcoming spinoff.

“A band of resistance fighters unite for a daring mission to steal the Death Star plans in Star Wars anthology film, Rogue One,” the official Star Wars account tweeted on Sunday.

Felicity Jones, who was previously confirmed to star in “Rogue One,” will play a rebel soldier. The film will take place before Episode IV.

The news was revealed at a panel with Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, Lucasfilm head of development Kiri Hart and “Rogue One” director Gareth Edwards. Josh Trank was scheduled to appear at the panel, but he didn’t show, with moderator Pablo Hidalgo saying he was “under the weather.”

The teaser took on war movie visuals, showing a TIE fighter flying above a forest planet before revealing the Death Star. The footage also featured shots of soldiers running through darkness.

“The Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic, before the dark times, before the Empire,” says a Obi-Wan Kenobi’s voiceover, as portrayed by Sir Alec Guinness in the teaser.

Gareth said “It’s called Star WARS,” and his crew is full of people who worked on war films like Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down and Zero Dark Thirty. In fact Creig Fraser, who shot Zero Dark Thirty, will shoot Rogue One.

“It comes down to a group of individuals that don’t have magic powers, that have to bring hope to the galaxy,” said Gareth.

Hart said the standalone movies are being called “anthology films” rather than spinoffs, varying in scale and genre, with new characters and places.

Perhaps because Trank wasn’t there, no information was released about the upcoming standalone film that he will direct.

“Star Wars: Rogue One” Rogue One starts shooting this summer, and is set to be released in December 2016, while the J.J. Abrams-directed “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” will hit theaters Dec. 18.

STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII Gets Release Date; Spinoff Movie Called ROGUE ONE

Disney and Lucasfilm have announced details of the upcoming “Stars Wars” films at its annual shareholders meeting in San Francisco.

Rian Johnson has also been confirmed to write and direct “Star Wars: Episode VIII,” which will hit theaters May 26, 2017.

Gareth Edwards’ upcoming standalone film, starring Felicity Jones, will be called “Rogue One.” The movie starts filming in London this summer and opens Dec. 16, 2016.

“Rogue One,” based on an idea by Oscar-winning vfx supervisor John Knoll, was written by “Cinderella” scribe Chris Weitz.

Kathleen Kennedy will produce the standalone film alongside Knoll, Tony To and John Schwartz.

Plot details of “Rogue One” are unknown.

Edwards’ spinoff movie is one of two known “Star Wars” spinoffs in the works at Lucasfilm and Disney. Director Josh Trank (“Chronicle”) is developing another top secret feature.

It’s unclear how both spinoff features will play into the upcoming seventh chapter “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” if at all. Speculation has Edwards’ and Trank’s movies focusing on the early days of original characters Princess Leia and Han Solo.

The J.J. Abrams-directed “Force Awakens,” which opens Dec. 18, features original cast members Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher as well as newcomers like John Boyega and Adam Driver. It will take place 30 years after 1983’s “Return of the Jedi.”

Disney is banking heavily on the “Star Wars” franchise after acquiring Lucasfilm in 2012 for $4 billion. The studio is also planning “Star Wars”-themed attractions at Disney parks across the globe.

Source: Star Wars