I'm frustrated that ending of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

However, not everyone watched the Disney+ series, so Marvel needed to find a way to get casual audiences excited about the next installment in the Captain America franchise. The first trailer for Brave New World included a brief tease of Red Hulk at the end, creating intrigue about the MCU's new Hulk. As more promotional material was released, the Red Hulk was featured even more prominently, in TV spots, posters, and social media posts. After watching Brave New World again, it's evident that the film could have been a more enjoyable experience if Red Hulk had been kept a secret.

Marvel Using Red Hulk In Its Marketing For Captain America: Brave New World Hurt The Film's Mystery

Brave New World's narrative suffered since audiences already knew when Red Hulk was coming.

President Thunderbolt Ross' Red Hulk transformation isn't surprising to many comic book readers. It's a major part of his character in Marvel Comics, and it was only a matter of time before the MCU brought that to life. However, casual audiences may not know about Red Hulk, and it would have been a shocking twist. The film knows that, and structures its narrative in a way that's more beneficial if the audience doesn't know what could happen. Red Hulk doesn't appear until Captain America: Brave New World's ending, and it's never fully revealed what Ross could become until that moment.

In the film, it's revealed that The Leader had been poisoning Ross' heart medication with Gamma radiation, meaning Ross was at risk of transforming into the Red Hulk at any time. During the Celestial Island battle between the U.S. and Japan, Ross almost turns into the Red Hulk but manages to fight it off. However, this scene's tension is vastly reduced, since the trailers show his first transformation occurs at The White House - and the fact this is made into such a big moment in the trailer reinforces the idea for viewers that Ross won't transform until this final point of the film.

The Trailers Revealed Many Of The Coolest Moments From Sam Wilson And Red Hulk's Fight

The climactic battle had many of its best moments spoiled.

After Ross loses control and hulks out, Captain America must stop him from causing catastrophic damage to Washington, D.C. He destroys a large portion of the White House and even the Washington Monument. The pair then duke it out in the cherry blossoms, where Sam does his best to knock him out. This fight had plenty of memorable moments, but unfortunately, many are shown in the trailer, taking away the excitement of seeing it for the first time.

Some of the best moments - such as Red Hulk catching the shield and slamming it down, roaring in front of a fiery background, and throwing a car at Sam that he slices in half with his wings - were already shown in the film's marketing. The fight itself was cool, but it would have had more impact if nobody had known what to expect. As it stands, the battle ends up feeling slightly underwhelming, especially since the audience was waiting for it the whole movie. It needed to deliver a spectacular finale, and didn't go beyond what the trailers showed.

Why Marvel Should Have Kept Red Hulk A Secret

Reactions to Brave New World may have been better if nobody knew about Red Hulk.

The reactions to Captain America 4 from audiences and critics are divided. The film holds a 49% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, and audiences gave it a B- CinemaScore, the lowest score for any MCU movie. Keeping Red Hulk a secret would not have saved the film, but audiences would have been buzzing about the big reveal when they left the theater. They could have told people they needed to see Captain America: Brave New World to see the final battle, even if the rest of the film had issues.

I'm not alone in feeling this way, as other fans and critics have also expressed this opinion online. Writer, director, and producer Joe Russo shared similar feelings on X, saying the "audience is ahead of the movie the whole time." Captain America: Brave New World suffered a massive box office drop in its second weekend, and this arguably could have avoided it if more people were urged to see the film's surprise ending. After a second viewing, it's even more frustrating that Red Hulk was spoiled, and I wish Marvel had more faith in Sam Wilson's appeal.

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