The Incredible Hulk creator Kenneth Johnson reveals why Lou Ferrigno was banned from speaking in iconic show
The Incredible Hulk creator Kenneth Johnson has revealed the reason why he had he wouldn't allow Lou Ferrigno to speak in his iconic 1980s TV series.
The Incredible Hulk star Lou Ferrigno was banned from speaking in the 1970s series because he had a New York accent.
The show - based on the Marvel Comics character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby - ran between 1977 and 1982 and was repeated throughout the '80s as well as spawning a series of television films.
It was created by Kenneth Johnson and followed mild mannered scientist David Banner – played by Bill Bixby – trying to live his life without getting angry and turning into the enraged Hulk, played by Ferrigno.
Bixby as Banner was famous for his line “you wouldn’t like me when I’m angry” and was a global hit.
Now, the TV programme’s creator Johnson has spilled that Ferrigno always wanted some dialogue as the Hulk but the writer wouldn’t let him talk because of his thick Brooklyn drawl.
Speaking to BANG Showbiz, Johnson - who also wrote sci-fi shows V and The Bionic Woman – shared: “Lou Ferrigno used to say to me, ‘Kenny, why doesn’t the Incredible Hulk have more dialogue?’ I said, ‘Lou, for starters he didn’t come from Brooklyn like you.’
“I decided back when I was doing the original series that if Hulk talked, it would sound dumb. I convinced Stan that we don’t need to hear Hulk smash, we see Hulk smash. Like the Frankenstein monster in the ‘30s movie I decided he should not speak, it would be better if he didn’t.
“Lou was really a Brooklyn boy and I really love him, and I still do, we’re still really close friends today.”
Johnson believes that his Incredible Hulk series still has fans now because Ferrigno made the Hulk a real character in the world, unlike the CGI Hulk people see in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies.
He said: “I was using a real human being in Lou.
“A CGI creature in the middle of the real world as real as it might look, it’s still a cartoon in the real world.
“Even when it’s the very, very best CGI it’s still not in the same movie, you know what I mean?”
Johnson has worked with Big Finish Productions to create audio adventures inspired by his acclaimed 1983 television miniseries V.
The plot of the show focuses on an alien race known as the Visitors coming to Earth seemingly in peace before their sinister intentions and true identity are revealed.
V – UK: Visitation - starring Annabel Baldwin, Janie Dee and Jack Myers - and V - UK: Occupation are available now.
Go to Bigfinish.com/ranges/v/v-uk for more information and to order.
