“If I give this to William, will he pipe down or turn into the ape from Altered States?”

When is the last time you used “funky” in a sentence? Never, right? Supercharged actor William Hurt paid homage to James Brown when he spoke to MTV , nearly spoiling the unprecedented Hulk and Iron Man crossover in this summer’s The Incredible Hulk. Alas, due to some dubiously eccentric wordplay, he merely revealed that his character, General Thaddeaus “Thunderbolt” Ross, is present when Tony Stark appears…

“I have a scene with Iron Man, with Robert Downey Jr. It’s a funky scene. I don’t know how it’ll work,” Hurt admitted, saying it was a thrill to appear as General Thaddeus Ross during Downey’s scene. “I know it’s weird [to work with a character from another movie], and to know it’s a device. We did something; I don’t know what that’s going to be like [to watch].”

Hurt confessed that he only has two scenes with lead actor Edward Norton in the $125 million Marvel production, before revealing Hulk’s moment of truth in the film.

“Liv Tyler, I play her father, General Ross,” he explained. “There’s a scene, and during that scene there are a number of things happening. [Hulk] has beaten Abomination, and then there’s a crowd that gathers around, and they realize that he’s beaten Abomination. That Abomination was the one who was killing for just the joy of killing; Hulk is not the one. It’s the moment of turn,” Hurt added, “when society’s relationship with Hulk stops being so stupid.”

Well versed in the comics’ Hulk mythology, calling the character his fave, Hurt parlayed that the revamp is “stylistically very different” from director Ang Lee’s much maligned, underperforming 2003 effort, Hulk. This Hulk will be far more “heroic” and reflective of society’s worst tendencies. So, he’s less like Barry Bonds and more likes this kid?

“[The script by Norton and Zak Penn] has to do with the fact that [Banner's] conscience still exists in a body that is a manifestation of power and is greater than his own ability to control it - and how he’s learning that relationship,” said the veteran actor, who can currently be seen in the awards-season favorite “Into the Wild.” “Because that’s what’s happening to us. That’s the central metaphor for all of us, that we’re learning these powers - technological powers, whatever - that we don’t know if we have enough conscience to control in a wise way yet. And that’s what he’s doing. “

This all comes from an actor who is well known for ripping productions he’s not fond of, so his enthusiasm is a good sign. But while the movie has a rather cool cast, there’s still no teaser trailer, and even Indiana Jones, a movie with nothing to prove, has one arriving before it. The core aspect to this film’s success is how much the filmmakers impress a potential audience when they show the new Hulk in action. Unlike Batman or Spiderman, Hulk is all CGI, and I feel the same about director Louis Leterrier (The Transporter franchise) as I did with Len Wisemen on Live Free or Die Hard last summer. They are like sillier Michael Bays with a kitchen-sink aesthetic that doesn’t work for me.