She-Hulk Producer Reveals the Real Reason Hulk Left Earth

Despite She-Hulk: Attorney at Law being about Tatiana Maslany's Jennifer Walters, many fans have been talking non-stop about the big Sakaaran spaceship that has appeared in the first two episodes. It's not hard to understand why—its implications are pretty wide-reaching, especially given its brief few moments in the second episode.

Warning - The rest of this article contains spoilers for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law Episode 2.

As Jen calls her cousin to let him know she'll be representing Abomination, little does she know he's sitting on that very spaceship. As the phone call ends, Bruce is already on his way to Sakaar, the planet seen during Thor: Ragnarok, as confirmed to The Direct by She-Hulk's producer, Jessica Gao, herself.

Mark Ruffalo admitted that the scene "certainly does suggest" there are some big things ahead for Bruce Banner—potentially even huge events such as Planet Hulk or World War Hulk, which would have massive ramifications for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

But why else might the show have banished big green from the planet?

Why Hulk Left Earth in She-Hulk

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, head writer and producer Jessica Gao explained why they decided to have Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner fly off into space—besides what future storytelling implications it may have.

The producer admitted that they were just "looking for a convenient way to make sure that everyone knew this is Jen's show:"

“As far as Bruce leaving, we really were just looking for a convenient way to make sure that everybody knew this is Jen’s show, and it’s not going to be about Bruce... and we just wanted to make sure people weren’t expecting to see Bruce every single episode hanging out with her, because frankly, we can’t afford it.”

While talking with The Wrap, Gao teased that there are "maybe one or two questions" egarding Hulk, but fans shouldn't expect She-Hulk to "become a two-hander with [Mark Ruffalo]:"

“Well, I will say this, it’s basically a big indication to the audience that this is definitely She-Hulk’s show and to not expect it to be Hulk’s show... however, you do get a tiny bit of a couple of maybe one or two questions answered, but don’t expect this to suddenly become a two-hander with Hulk.”

When Will Bruce Banner Pop Up Again?

It's completely understandable that the creators would need to find a way to get Bruce Banner out of the show. Obviously, as Jessica Gao mentioned, he's expensive to have on-screen, especially alongside another Hulk. More importantly, however, is that audiences have to stay focused: this is about introducing Jennifer Walters to the world, not consistently keeping up with Bruce.

But will Smart Hulk make his way back to Earth before the show ends? Almost certainly. Not only have previous set photos shown Mark Ruffalo alongside a Tatiana double, but Tim Roth also mentioned in an interview how he worked with him on set for the show—which, clearly, has not yet come to pass.

It would be a big missed opportunity if the series never paired Mark Ruffalo with Roth on screen—it's an interaction that is a good fourteen years late. But will Banner's Sakaaran problems come back to Earth with him and entangle themselves with Jen as well? Fans will have to wait and find out, though answers like that might not happen until the finale.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law releases new episodes every Thursday, exclusively on Disney+.

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