Update:

As we theorize below, it's unlikely that we will see a standalone Planet Hulk movie in the near future. Mark Ruffalo has revealed that Universal retained the rights to a solo Hulk movie, which is why Marvel Studios hasn't actively pursued one yet.

"Marvel doesn’t really have the rights to that yet," the actor told Collider . "That’s still Universal’s property, so there’s that issue. That’s a big impediment to moving forward with that. Now I don’t think that’s insurmountable, by the way, but I don’t know where it’s going from here for me."As far as we understand, Marvel Studios has the rights to the character. However, in the original deal Disney did not purchase the rights to distribute The Incredible Hulk and, as such, Universal retained the distribution rights to a Hulk-focused movie.However, as we mentioned, it's Ruffalo sounds fairly confident that Hulk very well may be headed to space. So it's possible that elements of a Planet Hulk or Hulk in space story could play a role in a larger movie such as Marvel's Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 and 2.Original story follows...

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Audiences will see Mark Ruffalo's return as Bruce Banner/The Hulk when Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in theaters in just a few weeks. To date, we've only seen Ruffalo's version of the character in the context of the Avengers films, which has us wondering when we may get to see The Hulk spread his massive wings in a solo film. Or as an additional player in another Marvel movie, a la Black Widow in Iron Man 2 and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.IGN had the opportunity to speak with Ruffalo and Scarlett Johansson about Avengers: Age of Ultron recently - stay tuned for more on that! During our conversation, we touched on what may be ahead for Hulk and Ruffalo teased what could be - for many fans - a dream come true."I think there's a lot of places to go with him [Hulk].""Like where?""Space?""Well he's going to space. Yeah, I mean there's some talk of maybe Planet Hulk.""Would you like to see that?""I'd be completely interested in entertaining that.""Do they have a Starbucks there? That's what I want to know."[Laughs] "They don't. It's pretty bleak."Ruffalo went on to say that he hadn't been involved in active talks for the project and it isn't a part of Marvel's announced slate . So it's unclear what - if any - stage of development it's in.Planet Hulk and Hulk in space rumors have circulated for quite some time. However, as mentioned, a solo Hulk movie hasn't been officially announced. Last July, during the Guardians of the Galaxy junket, Marvel head Kevin Feige told IGN that there were no plans for a Planet Hulk movie anytime soon, and spoke about the challenges of adapting that particular storyline as a film. For his part, though, Ruffalo seems game and the conversation does appear to be continuing.It's possible that things may have changed in the ensuing months, or that rather than a solo Planet Hulk movie, we may see an aspect of that storyline in another film such as Infinity War. As the Marvel cosmic universe expands, the possibilities feel limitless. Additionally, Hulk wasn't in Civil War in the comics continuity, as he was already in space. So that story thread may make sense for what's ahead in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.We will keep you updated as details emerge. In the meantime, you can see both Black Widow and The Hulk when Avengers: Age of Ultron opens on May 1.What do you think? Would you like to see a Planet Hulk movie? Sound off in comments!

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Roth Cornet is an Entertainment Editor for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @RothCornet and IGN at Roth-IGN