Yahoo Finance Mark Ruffalo: 'Star Wars' Is 'Same' Each Time but Marvel Gives 'Whole Different Feeling' in Sequels
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Mark Ruffalo is comparing Star Wars and Marvel, arguing the superhero franchise is better at avoiding sameness in each installment.
The actor, 54, has played Bruce Banner, aka the Hulk, for a decade since his debut in 2012's The Avengers, and he again reprises the role for a new Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
In an interview with Metro U.K., Ruffalo defended the Marvel Cinematic Universe's many sequels, prequels, spin-offs and television series of late, saying each entry offers something new — unlike another Disney property, the Star Wars saga, according to him.
"I understand that these things run their course and then something else comes along. But the thing Marvel has done well is that, inside the MCU, just as they do with comic books, they let a director or an actor sort of recreate each piece to their own style, their likeness," said Ruffalo. "Marvel generally lets them bring that to the material."
"If you watch a Star Wars, you're pretty much going to get the same version of Star Wars each time," he added.
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Big-screen Marvel movies in theaters this year include Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder and November's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Over on the Disney+ streaming service, this year includes Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk. Plus, Marvel unveiled plans for a jam-packed next few years of projects.
Star Wars, meanwhile, has mostly paused on movies since 2019's Rise of Skywalker wrapped up the recent trilogy. The Mandalorian found success with two seasons so far on Disney+, as well as The Book of Boba Fett and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Next, the 12-episode Rogue One prequel series Andor debuts in September.
Damon Lindelof — the writer/producer behind shows like Lost and HBO's Watchmen — recently said on Vulture's Into It podcast that he watches every Marvel release but wishes they were fewer and farther between so they were more of an event.
"From a slightly sort of more cynical standpoint, this is a business. It's an industry," he said. "And if you make a couple of great Marvel movies, the instinct is, 'We need to make more Marvel movies, and we need to expand this.' And I have this sort of interior feeling of like, 'Wow, I wish they made less because it would make each one that came out a little bit more special.' ... People don't want things to end. I do."
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law premieres Aug. 18 on Disney+, where fans can also stream other Marvel and Star Wars titles.
