Mark Ruffalo is widely recognized for his iconic portrayal of the Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The actor dedicated a decade to this role, making a significant contribution to the franchise. The MCU also played a pivotal role in Ruffalo’s career, propelling him to fame after his debut as the Hulk.
However, Ruffalo has expressed some dissatisfaction with certain aspects of the role, particularly the Hulk’s appearance. In an interview, he candidly discussed his feelings about the “Man-Cancellation suit” used to portray the Hulk. He admitted that seeing other actors in their impressive superhero suits made him feel somewhat self-conscious. Fortunately, his long-time friend and co-star, Robert Downey Jr., empathized with his situation and offered him support.
Mark Ruffalo was humiliated by his Man-Cancelling suit to play Hulk
In 2012, Mark Ruffalo made his Marvel debut as the Hulk in The Avengers. Since then, he has reprised his role in various MCU films, gradually refining his portrayal to become a perfect fit for the character. Nevertheless, stepping into the shoes of the Hulk was no easy feat, as Ruffalo faced his fair share of challenges when transforming into the green giant.
During an interview with GQ, the actor claimed that playing the Hulk is a “humiliating” process. To transform himself into Hulk, the actor wore a motion-capture suit, which was tight-fitted and covered in sensors to capture Ruffalo’s movement for later CGI work. The suit wasn’t as flattering as the other superhero suits, hence Ruffalo humorously referred it to as a Man-Cancelling suit. Explaining his struggle with the suit, the actor said,
“I’ve done so much motion capture. I have to wear what I call the man-canceling suit, which is this really tight leotard that makes you look big where you want to look small and small where you want to look big.
It was so humiliating, and all the actors, whenever I walked on set, would just start laughing at me because they were in their cool superhero costumes and I’m wearing these ridiculous pajamas that made me look like a Chinese checkerboard.”
Others may not understand Ruffalo’s struggle, but his long-term friend and co-star Robert Downey Jr. acknowledged his issue and offered him support.
Robert Downey Jr. Acknowledged Mark Ruffalo’s struggle
Before crossing paths as Marvel actors, Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. previously teamed up for the 2007 film This is Zodiac. Since the actors have known each other for a long time, they share a great bond. During the same interview, Ruffalo shared that Downey Jr. came to him while filming Avengers: Endgame to offer sympathy. Ruffalo recalled,
“In the last movie, he came up to me and he said: ‘I have a lot of compassion for you.’”
Ruffalo further shared that when he asked the Iron Man actor why he felt so, he said that he noticed him struggling with his suit throughout the shoot.
Even though Ruffalo didn’t like his suit, it’s indeed commendable that despite not liking it, he put in all his efforts and aced the role of Hulk. Perhaps that’s the reason he is one of the most beloved characters of the Marvel franchise.
Source: GQ
