Mark Ruffalo Sets the Record Straight on Marvel and Cinema

Mark Ruffalo is not sweating the whole "are Marvel movies cinema" argument. Asked about it again, he basically shrugged and kept it moving.

The setup

On the podcast We're Not Kidding with Mehdi Hasan, the Hulk himself got a direct question about the ongoing criticism from filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, who have waved off superhero films as not real cinema. Ruffalo didn't spiral into a lecture. He cut straight to how he sees the job.

"I just see it as acting and storytelling. I like to do it all. I don't give a s--."

Ruffalo's take

Coming up through theater, he says he never put guardrails on what kind of work he could do. To him, Marvel isn't some separate, lesser thing; it's another lane where actors can stretch. He calls the whole experience creatively rewarding, especially the continuity of playing Bruce Banner/Hulk over time. He even admitted he never expected to land the closest thing acting has to a steady day job.

Different directors, different flavors

Ruffalo likes that each movie feels distinct depending on who's behind the camera. He pointed to Avengers and Thor: Ragnarok as very different rides, each with its own energy and tone, and says that variety keeps the work interesting.

The audience factor

He also brought up the fan response that comes with these movies. He once slipped into a screening of Avengers: Endgame with his son, unannounced, and watched the room go full sports-arena during the big moments — cheering, crying, the whole chest-beating catharsis you usually only see at championship games.

Bottom line

Ruffalo has heard the critiques, but he's not buying the idea that Marvel somehow sits outside cinema. For him, it's all storytelling, and he picks projects that challenge him while entertaining people. He also shouted out the crews and the culture around these productions, saying he's having a blast doing them.