6. Mark Ruffalo - Spotlight
While the first phase of the MCU kicked off with Edward Norton in the role of Bruce Banner/Hulk in The Incredible Hulk, differences of opinion soon led to Norton dropping out of the project. While his take on the character was certainly above average, the transition to Mark Ruffalo has been a smooth and painless one for most fans. Ruffalo's take on Banner is certainly more fragile than Norton's, giving the character more emotional depth, and Ruffalo's background in mature independent movies no doubt helped him find this nuance. His upcoming movie Spotlight is another low key independent production which, like earlier Ruffalo movies The Normal Heart and Foxcatcher, is concerned with real world concerns which no doubt reflects Ruffalo's own off-camera campaigning. Playing a man caught up in an investigation into child abuse in the Catholic church is a far cry from portraying a scientist who transforms into a green monster when he gets angry, but it's always a pleasure to catch Ruffalo in more serious dramatic roles.