After the events of Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Hulk went missing. Given that the Bruce Banner hasn’t been seen much outside of the Avengers films, it was likely that the next time we would see him was going to be in Avengers: Infinity War Part I and II in 2018 and 2019. That’s four long years before we would ever see the green muscle-bound hero ever again. There were rumors that he may have sent himself off into space where he would meet up with the Guardians of the Galaxy, but director James Gunn made it abundantly clear that Hulk wasn’t going to be in the Guardians sequel. In fact, Gunn had to do it twice. Despite a couple ofplayful teases on social media, Mark Ruffalo said he wasn’t sure if the Hulk would be back soon.

Then an interesting rumor popped up this week saying that Hulk could star alongside Thor in Thor: Ragnarok. It sounded like just another rumor that would be debunked, given how many films he was attached to and confirmed not to be in, but it looks like the rumors are true. There is a new report that says Ruffalo is in the midst of signing a deal to appear alongside Chris Hemsworth in the final film of the Thor trilogy. More on the story below.

Variety says that Ruffalo is in final negotiations.

Marvel is still keeping a tight lid on plot details for the film. There are reports that the pair would be on some sort of “cosmic road trip”, and that the film could be set “on a distant planet” and not on Earth or Asgard. If the rumor was true, then it would leave the door open for the sequel to use elements of “Planet Hulk,” a comic book story arc that Marvel Studios was rumored to be trying to adapt for the past few years. There are also rumors that the film will introduce Valkyries into the MCU. None of this is confirmed, yet.

Thor: Ragnarok would mark the first time that Ruffalo’s Banner/Hulk has had a major role outside an Avengers film. The last time we saw the character in a standalone film was when Edward Norton played the title character in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. Since then, Ruffalo stepped into the role, and has appeared as the Hulk in The Avengers; a small after-credits cameo as Bruce Banner in Iron Man 3; and going back for a full-length role in Avengers: Age of Ultron. It’s not clear what the size of Ruffalo’s role will be in Ragnarok, but he does have a reported four films left on his contract, so he may be signing on just to check one of those films off. But if these rumors are true, then it sounds like he has a significant role in Thor: Ragnarok. And if he is in both Infinity War films, that means he still has one more film left on his contract.

Tom Hiddleston and Jaimie Alexander will reprise their roles Loki and Lady Sif, respectively. Kiwi director Taika Waititi (What We Do In Shadows) has been tapped to direct the film, and will reportedly brighten Christopher Yost‘s script, which is said to have an apocalyptic vibe.

Thor: Ragnarok opens November 3, 2017.

[Source: Variety]