10 Characters Cruelly Recast Before They Made It Big

3. The Hulk (The Incredible Hulk & The Avengers)

Originally Played By: Though Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno helped bring The Hulk to life on TV, it wasn't until 2012's The Avengers that the character really reached his maximum potential, meaning a billion-dollar movie. In terms of Hollywood movies, he was first played by Eric Bana in Ang Lee's bizarre 2003 Hulk, before Edward Norton took the part in 2008's reboot, The Incredible Hulk. Both actors did well with what they had, though in Norton's case, his dictatorial attitude on set (even assembling his own cut of the movie in his trailer), caused him to be recast yet again for Bruce Banner's part in The Avengers. Recast As: Mark Ruffalo ended up being the third actor to play The Hulk in a movie inside of a decade, and gave what was easily the best performance of the three, aided entirely by Joss Whedon's excellent script. With considerably less screen time than either of the previous Hulk films, Whedon made Ruffalo's Banner an extremely smart and entertaining presence, while his Hulk was easily the highlight of the movie. Oh, how Ed Norton must be kicking himself for letting that part get away from him.