Norton’s two Hulk jobs

We heard back during Comic Con that Ed Norton wasn’t just starring in THE INCREDIBLE HULK, but also took a crack at the script.

Now we get a little more clarification on that gamma-irradiated morsel. It seems that original writer Zak Penn did the first draft and several rewrites before absconding to get his own poker comedy THE GRAND out to the masses. Norton came in and agreed to get all green shortly before the movie was gearing up to go before cameras, but he and director Louis Leterrier thought the script needed more muscle, so Norton’s deal included a rewrite (which he only had a month or so to crank out).

Of course, it sounds like Norton (who has a reputation for tinkering) basically ended up starting fresh with Banner’s road trip — the goal was to “separate the film from any confusion over its connection to the 2003 Ang Lee version by casting it in a more distinct, starting-over vein like BATMAN BEGINS or CASINO ROYALE.” So I guess it’s a “reboot” after all. The movie is currently shooting, but Norton is reportedly still smashing at the story.