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The following article contains spoilers for “Captain America: Brave New World”
Imagine the scene: You’re watching “Captain America: Brave New World,” wondering for something like an hour and a half just what, exactly, is Samuel Sterns’ (Tim Blake Nelson) endgame with President Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Harrison Ford in a recast role after William Hurt passed away in 2022). Slowly, realization starts to creep in as the gamma-powered villain abuses the president’s radio comms to psych him up aboard the USS Milius, and Ross temporarily reacts with a fury that turns his eyes red and makes his muscles bulge.
Even then, whatever inkling of suspicion or knowledge of Ross’ comic book backstory you might have at your disposal, the scene where he finally gives in and Hulks up during a press conference would hit like a brick. Seeing the Red Hulk rise from behind the podium, with Harrison Ford’s face and a visceral roar that would make a T-rex hang its head in shame, would be an all-timer of a Marvel Cinematic Universe scene. It’s easily the movie’s best moment — and it’s a shame that the marketing ruined it for us so thoroughly.
Red Hulk is a big part of this movie’s marketing game. After the “Brave New World” teaser trailer revealed him, further trailers and other promotional material have featured him so prominently that even the most casual moviegoer would find it hard to miss the giant red fist hammering Captain America’s (Anthony Mackie) shield in the posters. Disney’s eagerness to fill seats with the admittedly alluring premise of a Harrison Ford Hulk going to town against the MCU’s emerging centerpiece character is understandable. Still, keeping this plot twist in total darkness might well have jumpstarted a word-of-mouth reaction that would have been just as beneficial, if not more so.
Brave New World kept the wrong big secret all along
What makes the Red Hulk’s commanding presence in the film’s marketing so damning in my eyes is the fact that “Brave New World” had no problem keeping its other big secret — the comeback of the nigh-forgotten “The Incredible Hulk” character Samuel Sterns. He ended that movie with Bruce Banner’s (Edward Norton) gamma-radiated blood dripping directly into his gaping head wound. Now armed with a hyper-powerful brain, Sterns (known as the Leader in the comics) returns as “Brave New World’s” main villain: a malformed and bitter genius who’s out to avenge his lengthy imprisonment.
Sterns is the one pulling every string in the movie, yet even the final trailer only briefly shows his silhouette and hints that an unseen entity is controlling the events. Unfortunately, his actual plot is more or less a rehash of Helmut Zemo’s (Daniel Bruhl) villainous plan from “Captain America: Civil War.” Both men’s lives have been ruined through no fault of their own, so they set out to bring down the culprit (the Avengers for Zemo, Ross for Sterns) with a highly detailed long con that involves mind control, getting caught in the process but succeeding in their ultimate goal.
Tim Blake Nelson is always a welcome sight, but Sterns’ plan and presence don’t really seem to warrant the secrecy the film’s marketing gave them … especially since the promotional material had no problem with spoiling the far punchier surprise of the Red Hulk. In all likelihood, this path was chosen because a huge Red Hulk with Harrison Ford’s face is a far more captivating promotional tool than Nelson’s unnerving bubbly horror movie makeup. Still, the choice spoiled one of the greatest MCU surprises in years.
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