Back in May, Mark Ruffalo revealed that he’s getting some assistance from performance capture expert Andy Serkis (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) when it comes to his realisation of The Incredible Hulk in the currently-in-production Avengers: Age of Ultron. Now Serkis has confirmed to Variety that he is involved with the eagerly-anticipated Marvel sequel as part of his Imaginarium performance capture studio, in addition to another big Disney release in Star Wars: Episode VII.
“The Imaginarium is the performance capture consultant [on Star Wars: Episode VII and Avengers: Age of Ultron], and I’m playing a role (in both films). On The Avengers, I’ve been working closely with Mark Ruffalo. I’m not at liberty to mention [whether you’ll see my face]. But it’s all the same to me. I’ve never drawn a distinction when playing a role, whether it be live action or performance capture. Acting is acting. It’s just basically what you wear to the set that’s different.”
Serkis then went on to explain why Ruffalo needs some assistance with his motion capture work, despite having already portrayed the Hulk in such a fashion: “Performance capture was used on the previous Hulk, but not to the same extent Mark is using it now. There are tools and ways of working with an actor that makes them feel that they own the character. And a character the size of the Hulk needs ownership, which Mark has now.”
Avengers: Age of Ultron is set for release in the UK on April 24th 2015 and North America on May 1st 2015, while Star Wars: Episode VII arrives on December 17th 2015.
Originally published June 29, 2014. Updated April 15, 2018.
