He’s supposed to be immortal. That’s the whole point of the character, right? "The madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets." It’s a loop that theoretically should keep Bruce Banner alive until the heat death of the universe. Yet, the death of the Incredible Hulk is a topic that has haunted Marvel fans for decades, mostly because it has happened way more often than you’d think.
People always talk about Superman dying in the '90s. They remember Captain America on the courthouse steps. But the Hulk? His deaths are usually weirder, more poetic, and honestly, sometimes just plain depressing. We aren’t just talking about the movies here. While the MCU version of Bruce Banner is currently alive (if a bit "professor-fied"), the comic book history is littered with the gamma-irradiated corpses of various Hulks. It’s a cycle of destruction and rebirth that defines the character.
The Night Bruce Banner Finally Stopped Breathing
In the mainstream Marvel Universe (Earth-616), the most significant "permanent" death occurred during the Civil War II event in 2016. This wasn't some cosmic battle against Thanos. It was a tragedy. A young Inhuman named Ulysses had a vision that the Hulk would lose control and slaughter the Avengers.
Fear is a powerful motivator.
The heroes confronted Bruce Banner at a secret lab in Utah. Bruce was actually doing okay! He’d been using dead-cell therapy to keep the monster at bay. But the tension was too high. As the argument escalated, Clint Barton—Hawkeye—fired a specially designed purple arrow straight into Bruce’s eye. It killed him instantly.
Why would Hawkeye do that? Because Bruce asked him to.
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Months earlier, Banner had given Barton the arrow and the instructions: "If I ever look like I’m going to turn, you take me out." It was a mercy killing, a suicide by proxy, and it tore the Marvel community apart. This wasn't a hero falling in battle. It was a man being executed for a crime he hadn't committed yet. For a while, the Marvel Universe had to grapple with a world without a Hulk, and it felt empty.
That Time He Died on TV (The 1990 Movie)
If you grew up in the '80s or '90s, your Hulk wasn’t Mark Ruffalo. It was Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. The Death of the Incredible Hulk (1990) was the final TV movie following the legendary series. It’s a heartbreaking watch.
The plot involves Banner trying to cure himself (as always) while infiltrating a spy ring. In the climax, the Hulk is on a plane that explodes. He falls from a massive height, hitting the tarmac with a sickening thud. As he transforms back into a broken, dying Bruce Banner, he utters the most famous final line in superhero television history: "I am free."
It was supposed to lead into a revival movie called The Revenge of the Incredible Hulk, but Bill Bixby’s tragic passing from cancer in 1993 meant this was the definitive end for that iteration. It remains one of the few times a superhero death felt final, grounded, and deeply human. No magic rocks. No multiversal reboots. Just a tired man finally finding peace.
The Immortal Hulk and the "Green Door" Concept
You can't talk about Hulk dying without talking about Al Ewing’s Immortal Hulk run. This series completely changed the lore. It basically argued that the Hulk cannot die.
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Whenever Bruce Banner is killed during the day, the Hulk comes back at night.
The series introduced the "Green Door," a supernatural gateway to the Below-Place. Every time a gamma-irradiated being dies, they pass through this door and eventually return to the world of the living. It turned the death of the Incredible Hulk from a tragic ending into a horrific, body-horror recurring nightmare.
Banner has been:
- Vivisected and kept in jars while still conscious.
- Shot in the head in a grocery store.
- Drained of blood.
- Blasted by orbital lasers.
Every single time, he comes back. This perspective suggests that the "death" of the character is actually his greatest curse. He is denied the one thing Bruce Banner has wanted since the beginning: an ending.
Other Notable "Ends" for the Jade Giant
We’ve seen alternate futures where the Hulk is the last thing alive. In Hulk: Future Imperfect, we meet the Maestro. This is a version of the Hulk with Banner’s intelligence but none of his morality. He rules a post-apocalyptic wasteland. He eventually dies when he’s sent back in time to the original Gamma Bomb test site—killed by the very thing that created him.
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Then there’s Old Man Logan. In that universe, a villainous, inbred Hulk (it's a weird story, honestly) eats Wolverine. It doesn't end well for the big guy. Logan heals inside the Hulk's stomach and claws his way out. It’s arguably the most "graphic" death the character has ever suffered, showcasing how even the most durable skin can't protect you from an internal threat.
Why We Keep Killing Him
It’s about the stakes. When you have a character who is functionally invincible, writers have to find creative ways to "stop" him. Killing the Hulk isn't just about physical damage; it’s usually a narrative tool to explore Bruce Banner’s mental state.
Is the Hulk a separate entity? Is he a manifestation of trauma? When the Hulk dies, does Bruce die too? Usually, the answer is "it’s complicated."
In Avengers: Endgame, we saw a version of this "death" in a metaphorical sense. The "Savage Hulk" was essentially killed off to make room for Smart Hulk. Many fans hated this because they felt the rage—the core of the character—was lobotomized. Even if the body lived, the Incredible Hulk that audiences loved felt dead.
What to do if you want to dive deeper into Hulk's "Final" moments:
If you’re looking to experience these stories for yourself, don’t just watch the movies. The source material is where the real grit is.
- Read "The Death of Captain Marvel" and "Civil War II": These give you the best look at how the Marvel Universe reacts when one of their pillars falls.
- Track down "Hulk: The End": This is a one-shot comic by Peter David. It depicts the literal final moments of Bruce Banner as the last human on Earth. It is haunting and beautifully written.
- Binge the Immortal Hulk (2018-2021): If you want to understand why death is a revolving door for gamma mutates, this is essential reading.
- Watch the 1990 TV Movie: It’s dated, but the emotional weight of Bixby’s performance carries it.
The death of the Incredible Hulk is rarely the end of the story. It's usually just a transition into something darker, weirder, or more philosophical. Whether it's Hawkeye’s arrow or a fall from a plane, the character's demise serves to remind us that behind the green muscles, there is a very fragile man who just wants some quiet.
To truly understand the character, you have to look at his endings. They define his struggle more than his battles ever could. The fact that he always comes back doesn't cheapen the death; it just makes the tragedy of Bruce Banner’s life more profound. He is a man trapped in a loop of violence, and sometimes, even death isn't an exit strategy.