Marvel Studios achieved the realistic green color of Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk with the help of a bouncer.

With the scale at which the MCU produces their films, there are no lengths to which Marvel Studios wouldn’t go to get everything perfect, down to the last, minute detail. Therefore, there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes action that many fans may not be aware of when they only see the final product in the cinemas.
Mark Ruffalo Mark Ruffalo
But there are some aspects of those planning and execution details that should be known by the public, especially about the creation of Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk. Since the superhero would have to be made entirely of CGI, they had to ensure they got the perfect shade of green for his skin color. And in their time of need, a bouncer named Steve Romm stepped in to help.

How A Bouncer Helped Marvel Studios Develop The Perfect Shade Of Green For The Hulk

Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk in the MCUMark Ruffalo as The Hulk in the MCU
With more than 15 illustrious years since the advent of the MCU, there are many stories apart from the ones on the screen that excite fans, even the ones that happened behind the scenes. One of the most crucial among them is the design of The Hulk, played by Mark Ruffalo in the MCU. More specifically, the green color of his skin.

And for making it so realistic and not ridiculously comical, the fans would need to thank a 6 ft 5 in bouncer from Long Island named Steve Romm.

As reported in MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, it was imperative that Hulk, a hero who would be entirely made of CGI except for the motion capture, would need a very believable green shade for his skin so as to look photorealistic. Therefore, to test out these different colors, the production hired Romm to become their test subject. 

The bouncer’s only job was to come in every day and get his whole body painted in different shades of green so that the crew could assess which shade reacted to light on the colored skin and in what manner. During the entire process, Romm, called Green Steve on set, was nothing but cooperative and understanding, which made it easy for the animation supervisor Marc Chu to create the perfect Hulk.

This particular Hulk was actually being designed for the then-upcoming Avengers film, and Joss Whedon wanted the epic team-up to look as perfect as humanly possible. The introduction of Ruffalo as the new Bruce Banner meant that his alter-ego would also have to be made from the ground up. Thus, Romm’s contributions, though not very well-known, were crucial for the superhero.

How Did Mark Ruffalo Become The Hulk In The MCU?

Edward Norton in and as The Incredible Hulk Edward Norton in and as The Incredible Hulk
While the Now You See Me star may have been forever immortalized as the green rage monster in the film industry, the MCU first introduced The Hulk with Edward Norton playing the role of Bruce Banner.

2008’s The Incredible Hulk would be the first time when the superhero would become part of the MCU with Norton as the face of Banner. However, due to creative differences with Marvel Studios, Norton decided to leave the franchise behind, which allowed Ruffalo to take his place, and the rest is history.

The Avengers, streaming on Disney+.