Why did the 'The Hulk' films fail? Kenneth Johnson feels THIS is the reason
, the creator of the classic 1977–1982 television series '
The Incredible Hulk
,' delivered a grounded, character-driven adaptation that resonated with audiences. The show, starring Bill Bixby as Dr. David Banner and Lou Ferrigno as the Hulk, focused on emotional storytelling and the humanity of its central character, which Johnson felt was key to its success.
The CGI dilemma in Hulk films
Speaking to BANG Showbiz, Johnson has openly criticized the solo Hulk films- Ang Lee's 2003 'Hulk' and Louis Leterrier's 2008 'The Incredible Hulk '- for their reliance on CGI, arguing that audiences struggled to accept a computer-generated Hulk interacting with live-action actors. He compared the effect to suddenly inserting a real human into a 3D animated film like 'Shrek,' saying, 'your brain is, 'No, it's not the same genre, you can't do that'".
Box office fallout and audience disconnect
The 2003 'Hulk' movie had a strong opening but suffered a historic 75–80% drop in box office sales by its second week. Johnson recalled, 'Folks saw it and said, 'Oh no, this is not it,'' attributing the decline to the jarring disparity between the CGI Hulk and the realistic human characters. The 2008 reboot with Edward Norton initially showed promise, focusing more on the character's humanity, but ultimately disappointed when trailers revealed a CGI-heavy Hulk, breaking the tone and connection with viewers.
Why did Hulk work in the Avengers?
Johnson believes the Hulk finally succeeded in 2012's 'The Avengers' because he was placed among other comic book characters. In this ensemble setting, the Hulk's larger-than-life presence felt more natural, as he was no longer the only fantastical element in a realistic world.
Classic moments and enduring influence
Johnson recounted being at the 2003 'Hulk' premiere, where the audience's only positive reaction came when Eric Bana delivered a variation of the TV show's iconic line: 'Mr. McGee, don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry.' The rest of the film, according to Johnson, failed to connect, reinforcing his point about the importance of character-driven storytelling over spectacle.
Johnson's Broader Sci-Fi Legacy
Beyond 'Hulk,' Johnson's influence continues with projects like his 1983 miniseries V, which recently inspired a new audio drama. Through his reflections on Hollywood's 'CGI addiction,' Johnson emphasizes that it's character and story-not visual effects-that create lasting impact.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
16 hours ago
- Time of India
‘I don't believe I'll die': Tech mogul Bryan Johnson is blending AI and biology to outlive death itself
Source: YouTube Bryan Johnson , the tech entrepreneur and biohacker, has ignited global debate with his audacious claim: 'I don't believe I'll die.' In a provocative interview with WIRED, the 46-year-old founder of Braintree acquired by PayPal and neurotech company Kernel revealed his ambitious pursuit of life beyond biological limits. Johnson isn't dreaming of immortality as science fiction; he's actively building what he calls the digital and biological architecture to outpace death itself. His work focuses on AI-driven mind replication, age-reversal therapies, and brain-computer interfaces , a combination he believes could redefine what it means to be human—and even what it means to be alive—in the 21st century. Bryan Johnson is redefining mortality by building Bryan AI In his interview with WIRED , Johnson was asked if he expects to die. His answer was clear: 'False. That is not my plan.' This isn't denial; it's a calculated vision rooted in a belief that human biology is not the final frontier. He believes the future lies in a hybrid model of identity, where the biological self is only one expression and a computational or digital self can be engineered, stored, and evolved independently. This digital extension of his consciousness called Bryan AI is being trained on thousands of hours of his recorded thoughts, writings, interviews, and conversations. His ambition is to create a thinking, responsive artificial intelligence twin that embodies his memories, thought processes, values, and personality. undefined Inside Bryan Johnson's strict lifestyle designed to slow aging Bryan Johnson's daily life is dictated by Project Blueprint , a $2 million-a-year self-experiment in biological age reversal. Some key elements of his hyper-structured lifestyle include: Strict diet and intermittent fasting, with precise nutrient intake 5:00 PM bedtime followed by over 8 hours of sleep Daily data tracking from organ health to facial skin elasticity Weekly full-body MRIs and ultrasounds A dedicated team of 30+ doctors and health experts At one point, Johnson made headlines for undergoing a three-generational plasma transfusion, using blood from his teenage son in an attempt to rejuvenate his own body. Though widely criticised, this was just one of many controversial steps he's taken to slow or possibly reverse biological aging. According to Johnson's data, he has reduced his biological age by over five years, including improvements in heart, liver, and lung health. Bryan Johnson's digital twin aims to redefine human consciousness through AI What makes Johnson's vision especially radical is his claim that consciousness can be digitised. He believes AI is not just a tool but a medium through which human identity could persist beyond biological limits. 'Bryan AI' is an artificial construct trained on a lifetime of data. Johnson aims for it to: Respond like him Think like him Serve as an extension or replica of his consciousness This project is part of a broader movement toward mind uploading—an area at the intersection of AI, neuroscience, and philosophy. While critics argue that digital copies can never truly be the person, Johnson disagrees, seeing no hard barrier between biological neural patterns and artificial replication. Bryan Johnson's Kernel maps the brain to bring AI closer to consciousness In parallel with his biological experiments, Johnson's company Kernel is developing non-invasive neurotechnology that can read and interpret brain activity in real time. These high-tech helmets are designed to map thought patterns and cognitive states—creating a neural interface that could one day: Help upload memory and personality Enable brain-to-AI communication Merge human consciousness with machine intelligence To Johnson, this is a natural progression: 'Biology is version 1.0,' he says. 'Computational existence is version 2.0.' Beyond the technical details, Johnson's philosophy reorients how we think about life and death. In his words: 'The most prized asset is going to be existence. Immortality will be devalued compared to simply being.' This reframes longevity not as a means to an end (e.g., legacy or success), but as the ultimate resource. If the essence of consciousness can be preserved, it renders mortality a design problem rather than a biological inevitability. Will Bryan Johnson be the first human to outlive death? Also Read | Blue Lock Rivals codes (July 2025) | Roblox Tennis Zero codes July 2025 | Roblox Mugen codes for July 2025 | Jujutsu Infinite codes July 2025 AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
NDTV
17 hours ago
- NDTV
Viral Photo Of Delivery Riders At Bengaluru Signal Sparks Comparison To Avengers And Power Rangers
A photo featuring multiple delivery riders taken at Bengaluru's Sony Signal has taken the internet by storm and sparked a hilarious meme fest. The viral photo captured a striking moment of spontaneous 'unity,' and it has led to many funny comparisons. The photo shows five food and grocery delivery riders in different coloured raincoats on two-wheelers on a rainy evening. Their attire has their company names, so we know that they work for Swiggy, Zomato, Zepto, Blinkit and Flipkart Minutes. After this image went viral, someone edited it to add a Big Basket delivery rider to the scene, too. Only possible at sony signal — rahul thanniru (@RahulThanniru) July 17, 2025 The viral photo has been reshared across social media platforms, and users are amusing themselves by coming up with different captions for it. Many have compared the delivery riders to Marvel's Avengers by sharing GIFs and pictures with "Avengers Assemble" written on them. A few have also called it a type of multiverse moment by captioning the picture "QC (Quick Commerce) Universe," or "DCU (Delivery Cinematic Universe)." The latter is also a pop cultural reference - a possible nod to the famous Marvel Cinematic Universe, or MCU. Other users compared the group to the Power Rangers, especially given that the riders' raincoats were of different colours. DCU (Delivery Cinematic Universe) — vani (@paneerchillli) July 18, 2025 Read some of the comments and reactions from X users below: Koramangala task force 😂🦄 — Peak Bengaluru (@peakbengaluru) July 18, 2025 What in the QC universe is this lineup. 😂😂 — Uɴʙᴏx Mᴀᴛʀɪx (@unboxmatrix) July 18, 2025 Green ranger is missing @bigbasket_com — Niklaus🇮🇳 (@SrhFanatic) July 18, 2025 Whitfield now very far behind… — Siddharth Lahri (@LahriRaj) July 18, 2025 This pic goes down in history— Sweet Tooth (@__Koustubh__) July 18, 2025 Multiverse of Madness— Sanket (@Marswalkerr) July 18, 2025 Peak Bengaluru moment! All QC together in an Avengers Assemble mode.— Naveen Shandilya (@ShandilyaNaveen) July 18, 2025 We are cooked and it's not good— Abhi Rajput (@Abhirajputfit) July 18, 2025 Posts about delivery riders have become a common part of online discussions about city life, and the above photo is just one example. Many viral posts spotlight different aspects of the same. Before this, a Delhi man made headlines after he revealed he worked as a delivery rider for both Zepto and Blinkit. He shared a detailed comparison of his experiences, and it received a lot of interest online. Read the full viral story.
Economic Times
a day ago
- Economic Times
Biohacker Bryan Johnson envisions a post-biological future, says 'We all will be immortal, to some degree'
Agencies Bryan Johnson believes that the fusion of biology and computation could redefine human existence, potentially allowing consciousness to exist beyond bodily death. In a striking interview with WIRED, American tech entrepreneur and biohacker Bryan Johnson made a provocative claim: he doesn't believe he will die—not in the way we traditionally understand death. 'False,' he said, when asked if he, Bryan Johnson, would die someday. Not out of arrogance, he insists, but out of a calculated belief in the fusion of biology and computation that could redefine human existence. The 46-year-old multimillionaire, best known for founding Braintree (which acquired Venmo before both were sold to PayPal), is now making headlines for a very different kind of venture—his obsessive, expensive, and highly public pursuit of biological immortality. 'We all will be immortal to some degree,' Johnson claims, 'as we move into a blend of biological and computational existence.' 'We're not stuck in biological software,' Johnson explained. 'We also have the ability to begin moving ourselves to computational systems. So currently, in a very crude form, I have a Bryan AI that has digested everything I've ever said.' According to Johnson, this AI twin is a digital backup of his identity—part of a larger bet that the fusion of human consciousness with machines could offer a form of indefinite continuity, if not immortality. The core of Johnson's philosophy hinges on a paradigm shift. As artificial intelligence progresses and the boundary between biology and computation blurs, he predicts that society's highest aspiration won't be wealth, family, or even legacy—but simply existing. 'The most prized asset is going to be existence,' Johnson said. 'Immortality, for example, will be devalued relative to existing. And that's my fundamental bet on the future.' Johnson's 'Project Blueprint,' launched in 2021, is his personal roadmap for radical life extension. The regimen includes everything from strict caloric intake and early bedtimes to intense biometric monitoring and even experimental plasma transfusions—one of which controversially involved his teenage son. The idea? To reverse his biological age, or at least slow its progression. While experts have largely dismissed plasma transfusions for anti-aging as unproven and potentially unsafe (the U.S. FDA warns against such procedures), Johnson remains undeterred. For him, the real breakthrough isn't in the blood—it's in the brain. As founder of Kernel, Johnson has poured resources into developing high-tech helmets capable of recording brain activity with unprecedented precision. He imagines a near future where minds can be interfaced, analyzed, and eventually liberated from their biological cages. In his worldview, biology is just version one of the human experience. Version two? A computational self—one that may exist beyond bodily death, backed up in digital everyone shares Johnson's optimism. Longevity scientist Andrew Steele argues that genetics still dominate life expectancy, rendering most lifestyle-based interventions marginal in effect. McGill University's Moshe Szyf calls Johnson's goals 'not grounded in current science.'
