Marvel Star Mark Ruffalo Reveals The One Way He's Similar To Hulk

As fantastical as some superheroes or villains might be, there's always a fragment, a link found by the actors bringing them to life to make them relatable and, in turn, make audiences connect with what they see on screen. Often, it's grief, managing a balancing act, or simply feeling out of place from the rest of the world. In the case of Mark Ruffalo's big green rage machine, the actor found a strong similarity between himself and The Incredible Hulk that he easily connected to — his anger issues as a child and a younger man and the effort to control them.

While attending the Emerald City Comic-Con (via The Direct), one of the last few remaining OG Marvel Cinematic Universe stars was asked, after wearing the ripped pants of Bruce Banner and "the other guy" for so long, what did he relate to most, personally? His response couldn't have opened any better. Laughing, he told the fans, "That's my secret," quoting his legendary line that preceded Hulk pummelling a Leviathan in "The Avengers." 

"I think we all probably — Little kids really relate to the Hulk because everyone's always telling them, 'Don't! Stop! Stop it! Don't do that! You'll break things! You're out of control!' That was my whole childhood and much of my teens." Thankfully, though, the star admitted that time has seemingly tamed his anger levels, even if some of his family might say otherwise.

While he might have shared similarly frustrated outbursts like his comic book movie counterpart (albeit with less city-wide damage), Mark Ruffalo has managed to chill out a bit, much like Bruce Banner in recent years. "That anger, that unexpressed anger, as nice as I might seem, my kids would probably tell you I could be angry," he admitted. "That's always been something that I've related to, especially when I was younger. I mean, I'm getting older and mellower."

Prior to this, though, the signs of a RUFFALO SMASH session had to be hidden during his earlier years in Hollywood and his effort to make it in the industry. Sure, he's gone on to cement himself as a credible talent with more brilliant films than bad ones, but his apartment walls seemingly suffered for it. "I had posters in the weirdest places in my apartment because there were holes in the wall from coffee mugs and fists from being rejected constantly, and just being angry, and having to express that anger. So, I relate to that." It's good to see that just like the Hulk, Ruffalo has been able to relax and go with the flow rather than see red, whether he's green or not.