Red Hulk in the MCU: How Thunderbolt Ross Will Transform

Red Hulk's MCU Arrival: How Can Thunderbolt Ross Make the Transformation?

Red Hulk in Captain America: Brave New World: A Seemingly Impossible Feat

Hold onto your hats, Marvel fans! Red Hulk is coming to the MCU in Captain America: Brave New World, with Harrison Ford stepping into the shoes of Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross. This is huge, replacing the late, great William Hurt. But here’s the thing: making Ross into Red Hulk in the MCU is surprisingly difficult due to those events that came earlier. The original storyline in the comics presented several easy and accessible plot points; the same can not easily happen in the MCU storyline; thus requiring clever writing.

Ross has been a thorn in the Hulk’s side since the beginning, this is a known plot element throughout various Marvel films. This creates an incredibly important thematic arc surrounding Ross’s transformation! It makes for a huge storyline!

Also Read: Red Hulk In Captain America: Brave New World? I Called It Years Ago!

The Super Soldier Serum Snafu: A Major Roadblock!

Baron Helmut Zemo with super-soldier serum in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Image

The biggest issue? That whole Super Soldier Serum storyline got wrapped up in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier! Remember? Baron Zemo destroyed all remaining serum samples! That's a serious problem, because that serum is key to the comic book version of the Red Hulk origin! In the comics, Ross becomes Red Hulk through Gamma Radiation PLUS the serum! This has a clear and established parallelism with Bruce Banner's origin as the Hulk (which, in itself also is involved with experimentation using variations of the same serum in an earlier timeline!), but it does raise a pivotal question. Now how is this going to work with all the changes and the way things had gone? Is it even possible to bring Red Hulk into the current MCU given these past choices?

The MCU has meticulously highlighted how rare, protected and nearly impossible it is to recreate this serum; emphasizing these kinds of themes makes the lack of readily available serum even more prominent, creating a major obstacle to bringing this classic and well-known Marvel character to life! There were several consequences stemming from the initial use, the earlier experiments ended badly; those prior examples created various issues such as Abomination; thus it remains to be seen what exactly happens with this attempt to utilize it further and how things proceed after various important developments.

Also Read: Red Hulk Theory: Captain America 4 Connects Extremis to MCU Mystery

Alternative Paths to Red Hulkship: Exploring MCU Possibilities!

Custom image of Captain America and Rhodey from the MCU and Venom in The Last Dance Image

It’s not completely impossible. There are alternatives! The MCU introduced other modified versions of the Super Soldier Serum; providing that very much needed pathway toward getting those results necessary! Here are the most obvious options and opportunities for those keen viewers and theorists:

Abomination’s Serum: This version, used on Emil Blonsky in The Incredible Hulk, combined with gamma radiation created Abomination! This might become a possible starting point given Ross oversaw those original experiments, which might explain how Ross might access such a serum and possibly some related experimental information that might aid in completing his own version; given that Abomination's own origin and transformation remain so eerily similar to what Red Hulk's original origins showcase.
Secret Serum Projects: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier reveals that serum experimentation continued secretly, as seen with Isaiah Bradley! This kind of secret continuation presents another possibility, with Ross potentially tapping into these sources for himself and the other experimental subjects – showcasing that some secret government programs remained underway and could be instrumental in providing Ross the missing components to his version of the Red Hulk; thus requiring new methods of acquiring access and some creative plot elements for providing justification.
Hulk’s Gamma Blood: A crazy idea. Perhaps Ross could use Nick Fury’s stored DNA samples; creating a whole new version. This involves Bruce Banner and possibly using genetic components from Banner and those related superhuman components; thus creating a novel experimental technique which could possibly serve to provide Ross an alternate serum that could ultimately have that same desired gamma-powered effects, thus requiring intense study and understanding of genetic engineering. These could present further insights for newer versions.
The Leader's Formula: The blood sample of Bruce Banner (in The Incredible Hulk) created The Leader! It could help create Red Hulk! That possibility is particularly high given that The Leader is returning in Captain America: Brave New World; demonstrating a planned story arc connecting Ross and the Leader!

The most likely path? A mix of Abomination’s serum and Hulk’s gamma-infused blood. This really creates an extremely strong and connected origin to what already exists in the MCU; a planned outcome and storyline from those earlier titles and is precisely why those plot points and hints previously established would appear so prominent. A smart storytelling approach! This could prove far easier than obtaining the original Super Soldier serum given how many roadblocks have been deliberately created earlier.

Also Read: Captain America 4: The Secret Sequel To Civil War & The Incredible Hulk

Ross's Transformation: Motivation and Revenge

Captain America (Anthony Mackie) and Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross (Harrison Ford) at the White House in Captain America 4: Brave New World Image

Why would Ross even WANT to be Red Hulk? Remember Ross's intense hatred for the Hulk! That deep animosity has defined him. It is also one of the major elements within his very personality and has never subsided and always continued throughout that series; especially involving his repeated attempts at dominating and controlling Hulk through various methods, thus this desire can potentially trigger Ross in choosing such dangerous possibilities. It isn’t simply an impossible random plot choice.

Those comic book origins? These provide numerous, intense motivators that easily fit into the MCU storyline: The intense desire for power and control which makes him seek a direct approach towards his perceived failures, this possibility has been ongoing; possibly that deteriorating health shown in Black Widow, or a drive to remain relevant in that evolving, superpower-filled MCU world – these events could push him into using various options toward getting that intense and needed empowerment necessary; even using revenge for pushing himself in such desperate circumstances to create this potentially unstable situation; creating an almost entirely organic pathway for this specific origin in a well-established storyline!

Also Read: Red Hulk's Captain America 4 Debut: A Dark MCU Theory

Conclusion: The Red Hulk’s MCU Debut is Shaping Up Nicely!

Captain Marvel, Spider-Man and Iron Man against a backdrop of Marvel posters Image

Making Red Hulk work requires very clever work, requiring significant attention to already established lore and narrative plot elements which is also an extremely difficult problem. Yet many opportunities have been intentionally introduced; suggesting that a pre-planned storyline has been occurring and that Captain America: Brave New World has all the parts to accomplish this in satisfying ways that please its fans! The writers need to focus on building upon those established ideas and build these creative developments logically.