Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk is back in the MCU — and he’s already setting up a showdown with Spider-Man that fans won’t see coming. Not in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, mind you, but in what comes after. The film’s post-credits tease isn’t just a wink to comic book lore. It’s a full-on invitation to the next phase of Marvel’s multiverse reckoning. And yes, it involves Bruce Banner turning green, Peter Parker swinging into danger, and a fight that’s been promised for decades. But not yet filmed. Not confirmed. Just… hinted at. With a smirk. A very specific smirk from Ruffalo. He said it himself: ‘It’s iconic and legendary in the comics.’ That’s all we need to know. Or is it? Because if the MCU has taught us anything, it’s that ‘iconic’ doesn’t mean ‘in the script’. It means ‘in the plan’. And the plan is still under wraps. Sony hasn’t greenlit Spider-Man 5. Marvel hasn’t confirmed Ruffalo’s return beyond the featurette. Even the word ‘Hulk’ was used only once, in a quote about a future team-up. So why are people already tweeting about it like it’s happening? Because the moment the Hulk appeared on screen. Even as a shadowed figure in a lab, eyes glowing, the internet went quiet. Then loud. Then silent again. Like everyone knew something they weren’t supposed to. The real story isn’t whether Hulk and Spider-Man will fight. It’s that they’re finally being allowed to. After five years of absence, Ruffalo’s version of the Hulk returned not with a bang, but with a whisper. A single line. A look. A promise. And now, with Avengers: Doomsday looming in December, and Secret Wars set for 2027, the question isn’t who’s fighting whom. It’s who’s left out. Robert Downey Jr. Is back as Doom. Tom Holland is still in the mix. But is Peter Parker? Is Bruce Banner? The answer, according to Amy Pascal, is still ‘picture-by-picture’. Meaning: no guarantees. No contracts. Just hope. And a trailer that ends with a shot of a broken lab door, a red suit, and a voice saying, ‘I’m not afraid of you.’ Who says that? We don’t know. But we’re pretty sure it’s not Tony Stark. And we’re pretty sure it’s not the Hulk. Yet. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is streaming digitally. The next chapter? Still waiting. But it’s coming. Mark Ruffalo’s smile says so.