Marvel's New Hulk Replacement Officially Announced

Published Sep 10, 2026, 6:30 PM EDT

Robert Wood is a writer and editor based out of Cheshire, England. He is the author of 'The False Elephant: and 99 Other Unreasonably Short Stories' - 100 stories, each told in exactly 100 words.

Rob got into comics via Bendis' Ultimate Spider-Man and the UK anthology 'The Mighty World of Marvel,' which was running Frank Miller's Daredevil, Classic Hulk and Contest of Champions II.

Prior to journalism, he worked in copywriting and copyedited for Oxford University Press. He is on X as @PinchTwigs and Instagram as roobwoodjourno.

The Hulk that Marvel fans know and love is no more, as Marvel confirms a replacement that has to be seen to be believed. First appearing in 1962 and played in the MCU by Mark Ruffalo, this is the Green Goliath as fans have never seen him.

Irradiated by gamma energy, Bruce Banner's repressed inner rage was unleashed as the Hulk - a dim-witted but ferociously strong goliath who even longtime rival Thor has acknowledged as the first artificial god.

And while Bruce Banner has long hated and feared his other half, doing everything he can to avoid causing destruction and death, what if he actually enjoyed being a force of pure carnage?

Marvel's Inverse Universe Transforms The Hulk

That's the question answered in Marvel's new experimental graphic novel Marvel Dimensions, from Alex Ross, Jason Millet, Josh Johnson and Ariana Maher. The comic depicts a new reality titled 'the In-Verse' which is populated by despicable versions of iconic Marvel heroes. However, none is as terrifying as this world's Bruce Banner.

The In-Verse Bruce is one of the first villains fans see in this comic, as it's revealed that in this universe, Bruce Banner is a villain known as 'Reactor.' Instead of manifesting a muscular body, Bruce can instead unleash a nuclear blast that takes the form of the Hulk fans know, formed entirely of radioactive energy.

This Bruce is the secret weapon of the armed forces, wiping out anyone who opposes this world's imperial America. And while Bruce Banner has always feared his power in Marvel's mainstream, in this world he's an unrepentant killer who doesn't hesitate to take lives.

Marvel Finally Has Its Own Earth-3

Gorgeously rendered by Alex Ross, the In-Verse is a fascinating addition to Marvel lore, akin to DC's 'Earth-3.' In DC lore, Earth-3 is the home of the Crime Syndicate, made up of evil versions of Superman (Ultraman), Batman (Owlman), Wonder Woman (Superwoman) and more.

DC has gotten a lot of iconic stories out of Earth-3, and even Marvel has an evil version of DC's heroes in the Squadron Supreme, but it's never had its own evil 'mirror universe' to draw on - at least not on a consistent, recurring basis. That just changed thanks to Marvel Dimensions, with the In-Verse flipping the morality of Marvel's characters.

Indeed, it's not just the heroes who have changed sides, but the villains too, setting up a status quo where a few ultra-powerful 'heroes' lord it over normal society, while a secret army of 'villains' fight to bring them down.

This new standalone graphic novel is bursting with creativity, essentially begging future creators to set new stories in this world of very familiar evil-doers. That's going to be much easier thanks to an unusual decision by Ross...

Earth-616 and The In-Verse Already Had Their First Crossover

Marvel Dimensions covers a lot of ground in introducing the backstory of the In-Verse, even revealing that the heroes of Earth-616 already did battle against their dark reflections, courtesy of the Grandmaster. The contest ended in a stalemate, with the evil heroes being a perfect match for the versions fans know.

This detail is an unorthodox but satisfying decision by Ross. While there'll be no epic build-up to the In-Verse's first crossover with Marvel lore, there's also no barrier to using it in future stories. It's already been introduced, and the Avengers are already familiar with their evil counterparts - the stage is fully set for future adventures.

Add to that tantalizing worldbuilding like the X-Men enslaving their fellow mutants, Spider-Man becoming a professional thief and a cyborg Nick Fury looming over New York in a flying fortress, and Marvel fans will be desperate to return to this new continuity as soon as possible.

However, amid all the great details, Ross' reimagining of the Hulk stands out as the most intriguing. Marvel Dimensions crafts a uniquely corrupted Bruce Banner who Hulk fans will be desperate to see again soon - hopefully in direct conflict with his heroic doppelgänger.

Marvel Dimensions is available now from Marvel Comics.