Marvel Making A Hulk-Sized Mistake In Avengers Movie?

Marvel Studios has certainly been putting their super-powered ducks in a row with their upcoming superhero ensemble movie, The Avengers. They've got Robert Downey, Jr. as Iron Man, Samuel Jackson as Nick Fury, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Chris Evans as Captain America, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye and probably even Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow. But is Edward Norton no longer Marvel's pick to play the Incredible Hulk's alter-ego, puny Bruce Banner?

HitFix is reporting that Marvel has decided to ditch Norton and instead will be casting an unknown in the part of the unstable Dr. Banner. Evidently Norton was all gung-ho to join the cast but Marvel, perhaps still a little gunshy after the dust-up with Norton over the script for The Incredible Hulk, decided to go for a more malleable -- and cheaper! -- no-name.

The comic book geek within me hopes that this is only a bit of salary kabuki on both sides of the argument, much like when Jake Gyllenhaal nearly replaced Tobey Maguire on Spider-Man 2. Frankly, there are so many outsized names and personalities in The Avengers as it stands now, that the film needs someone who can draw your eye to him, no matter what. Do you think an unknown has much chance in the fight for film oxygen when paired in a scene with Robert Downey, Jr. and Samuel Jackson? Here's to hoping that Marvel isn't playing the Sad, Walking Away Hulk Theme for Edward Norton just yet.

· EXCLUSIVE: Edward Norton is not the Hulk in 'The Avengers'... but he'd like to be [HitFix]