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Mark Ruffalo wishes his “friend from work” a happy birthday by sharing a funny behind-the-scenes of Fat Thor from the set of Avengers: Endgame.
Mark Ruffalo wishes fellow MCU vet Chris Hemsworth a happy birthday with a little help from that sleeping beauty that is “Fat Thor.” While Hemsworth made his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut as the God of Thunder in 2011’s Thor, Ruffalo inherited the role of Bruce Banner/Hulk from Edward Norton (who played the character in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk). Alongside Tony Stark/Iron Man, Steve Rogers/Captain America, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, and Clint Barton/Hawkeye, the pair served as founding members of the Avengers in 2012.
After teaming up in The Avengers, Hemsworth and Ruffalo appeared together again in Avengers: Age of Ultron. At the end of that film, Hulk left Earth in his friends’ Quinjet and wasn’t seen again until Thor: Ragnarok—which focused on the relationship between Bruce, Hulk, and Thor more than ever before. Outside of being “friends from work (who occasionally fight),” the two strongest Avengers hadn’t necessarily bonded before their trip to Sakaar. The enormous green rage monster ostensibly became an honorary Asgardian among the survivors of Ragnarök. Unfortunately, they were then separated and defeated by Thanos, which lead to Thor’s depression and subsequent weight gain. Thankfully, Professor Hulk was there to pull him out of his slump, and, together, they were unable to reverse the Mad Titan’s snap in Avengers: Endgame.
The Avengers’ core cast often expresses that they’re all very good friends. In 2018, 5 of the original 6 Avengers got matching tattoos (Ruffalo being the one who opted out). On top of that, they’re said to be part of a group chat in which they stay updated on each other’s personal lives. Ruffalo’s birthday shout-out is yet another example of the Avengers showing love for one another. While it could all be for the sake of publicity, Ruffalo and Hemsworth haven’t appeared together onscreen since the latter wore his fat suit in 2019.
The death of Iron Man, Black Widow, and the passing of Steve Rogers’ mantle, Hawkeye, Hulk, and Thor are the only original Avengers at large in the MCU. The God of Thunder’s fourth solo outing, Thor: Love and Thunder, released in theaters earlier this year, saw Hemsworth “trade dad bod for god bod,” Thor adopt a daughter, and seemingly set up a fifth film. Ruffalo will appear next in Disney+’s She-Hulk: Attorney At Law on August 18. The series will focus on Bruce’s cousin, Jennifer Walters after a blood transfusion gives her Hulk’s powers. If She-Hulk follows in the footsteps of Hawkeye—which set Kate Bishop to take over Barton’s superhero mantle—Bruce, Thor, and Clint may one day get to retire, let themselves go, and take a well-deserved nap.
