'Avengers: Infinity War' threw a huge red herring in its trailers and it paid off immensely in the movie
Warning: There are major spoilers ahead for "Avengers: Infinity War."
Though "Avengers: Infinity War" manages to juggle over two dozen characters, you still may find yourself bummed when a few familiar faces fail to show up in the nearly three-hour superhero extravaganza.
In particular, you may have been disappointed and even surprised by the small amount of screen time for one hero.
Last chance to head back before spoilers.
In a throwback to the first "Avengers" movie, the Hulk has a great scene near the film's start when he goes toe-to-toe with Thanos. But after getting thrashed pretty badly, Bruce Banner has trouble accessing the Hulk for the rest of the movie.
As Banner struggles to shift into his alter ego, Hulk cries out to Banner several times throughout the film as he refuses to join the fight to save the world.
It was one of many surprises during "Infinity War." But this one came as a real shock.
Why?
The Hulk is literally shown in promotional art and trailers for the movie running to battle in the movie's climactic battle in Wakanda. Take a look:
Instead, here's what we see in the final movie: The Hulk in the Hulkbuster armor.
While fans may be a bit upset we didn't see more of the green guy, I found it rather refreshing and hope others will as well.
Why this was smart of Marvel/Disney: Trailers give so much away.
As someone who watches every teaser, trailer, and clip released for these sorts of movies (for work), the fact that the Hulk wasn't in much of "Infinity War" was a pleasant surprise for me. I often feel like I'll see a great deal of the movie before heading into a potential summer blockbuster. Year in and year out they become a little predictable.
According to a 2015 Entertainment Weekly article, trailers give away so much because audiences want to see and know more about a movie before release. It helps in the decision-making process of whether or not to head to theaters. Spoilers be damned!
That said, when the time to screen a movie comes, I'll sit waiting for an expected line to drop or for a scene that has played out multiple times in teasers to appear on screen. It takes away from some of the movie magic.
If that's not the case, I'm often able to piece together or surmise sections of the movie. For instance, the entire beginning of "Infinity War" didn't catch me by surprise. If you've watched enough footage released for the movie, you can probably guess what happens.
It wasn't the only scene from trailers that didn't make it into "Infinity War."
The Hulk's appearance in Wakanda isn't the only misdirection in "Infinity War" trailers.
There was another talked-about trailer scene showing Thanos squeezing or turning Thor's head that didn't wind up in "Infinity War." Many presumed Thanos was turning Thor's head to make him watch the death of his brother Loki, but that didn't wind up being the case in the final movie.
Thanos makes an attempt to kill Thor, but it's not by crushing his head and he never forces him to watch his brother's death.
It's not a bad idea for other movie studios to model. Either film footage specifically to be used in trailers or have alternate versions of the same scene in teasers to keep as much of the movie a surprise for fans in theater. That said, you want to be mindful to not misdirect viewers too much. If Hulk wasn't in "Infinity War" at all, then I think people would be right in being upset about the way the character is marketed for the film.
To that effect, I'm not upset I didn't see Thanos turning or squeezing Thor's head because the movie still delivers the same emotional reaction expected from the God of Thunder as he watches his brother's death. I think people are more forgiving when a big movie doesn't give away all of its secrets and offers a few unexpected surprises.
So, what's going on with Bruce Banner and the Hulk?
Hulk isn't in much of "Infinity War," and you want some answers as to why.
There is a "Hulk No More" story line where Banner can't access the big green guy, but it's for a brief time and caused by another Hulk (yes, there are multiple Hulks). Otherwise, the comics don't lend themselves much to a helpful explainer.
Our best guess is that the Hulk persona is distressed and suffering from some sort of post-traumatic stress after fighting with and losing to Thanos. No person or alien has ever quite matched his might and Thanos was able to easily disable him.
Maybe he's upset he let down his pal Thor or maybe his return to Earth after being gone for two years has him a bit shy. The Hulk escaped Earth at the end of "Avengers: Age of Ultron" because he wasn't happy with all of the innocent lives that were killed as a result of the New York City attack in "Avengers" and Sokovia in "Age of Ultron." He may not be ready to face that.
In "Infinity War," Banner says the two have some hashing out to do. Now that half the team is gone, Banner better get things sorted ASAP. Thankfully, he's in Wakanda so we're sure Black Panther's sister Shuri can help.
Regardless, it seems like we'll get a lot more clarity on that next summer when the untitled "Avengers 4" hits theaters May 2019.
You can follow along with our "Avengers: Infinity War" coverage here.
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