Liv Tyler Returning For Captain America 4 Is The Latest Win For 2008's Incredible Hulk
Liv Tyler is set to rejoin the Marvel Cinematic Universe 15 years after starring in Louis Leterrier's "The Incredible Hulk," according to The Hollywood Reporter. The "Lord of the Rings" star isn't pulling double duty with a new character, but will actually be reprising her role as scientist Betty Ross in the upcoming film "Captain America: New World Order," per the outlet.
The inclusion of Tyler's Betty all but officially brings the once-neglected 2008 Hulk film back into Marvel canon, as she joins Tim Roth's Abomination on the list of characters from the film who have made a comeback despite the fact that the film featured an entirely different actor playing Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo currently plays the green guy, while Edward Norton did in the '08 film).
Though the MCU's Betty hasn't been seen in live-action in years, an animated alternate timeline version of the character (voiced by Stephanie Panisello) appeared in the animated "What If...?" series in 2021. She's also related to a key Marvel character who has played a (somewhat more continuous) major role in the MCU. The cellular biologist, who already had a romantic history with Bruce by the time she appeared on screen in "The Incredible Hulk," is the daughter of sometimes-villainous military man Thaddeus Ross. Thaddeus was another character who eventually appeared beyond the confines of Leterrier's Hulk film, popping up in four MCU movies including "Avengers: Endgame." The late actor William Hurt played Thaddeus Ross until his death, but Harrison Ford is set to step into the role for the next "Captain America" film.
The MCU keeps reminding us of simpler times
The plot of "Captain America: New World Order" remains under wraps, but it will be the first "Captain America" film to center on Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), who begrudgingly took up the hero's shield in "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier." It may be a while until fans get a clearer picture of how Betty will factor into the film, as the next Cap movie is actually a ways down the Phase 5 release schedule, with movies including "Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3" and "The Marvels" set to hit theaters beforehand — not to mention, a whole host of Disney+ shows.
Liv Tyler's reappearance is a welcome one in my book, as she's a compelling actor who's given great performances in films like "The Strangers" and the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Her return also may make sense in terms of Marvel's reported hopes to streamline its rather unwieldy slate of IP-driven projects. Any confusion about "The Incredible Hulk" and its place in the MCU canon could be offset by audiences' eagerness to see a familiar face, with Betty's return acting as a callback to a simpler time in the earliest days of the superhero movie boom.
"Captain America: New World Order" is set to open in theaters on May 3, 2024.