The Only Major Actors Still Alive From The Incredible Hulk TV Series

Given that the character is known for his wild rages and tendency to yell the phrase “Hulk smash!,” it’s curious that Kenneth Johnson’s 1970s TV series “The Incredible Hulk” should be as melancholy as it is. Series protagonist David Banner (Bill Bixby) is depicted as a lonely, tragic figure, hating the fact that he, when enraged, turns into a green monster (played by superstar bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno). Indeed, in the TV show — unlike the original Marvel comic books — Dr. Banner first started experimenting with strength-giving radiation after he witnessed his wife die in a car crash. He had heard the stories of certain people summoning great strength in emergencies, and wanted to give himself that strength permanently, using it to fight off the trauma and sadness he always carried around.

Then, once he managed to accidentally give himself Hulk strength, it immediately divided Dr. Banner from the rest of society. For the rest of “The Incredible Hulk,” Dr. Banner had to drift aimlessly across the U.S., hiding from authorities and keeping his Hulk powers secret. The only person in his life he might recognize was the reporter on his trail, a man named Jack McGee (Jack Colvin). Banner doesn’t often interact with Mark Roberts (Walter Brooke), Jack’s boss, on the series.

The Hulk, as mentioned, was embodied by Lou Ferrigno, but notable B-movie veterans Ted Cassidy and Charles Napier played the growling voice of the creature. Cassidy provided the Hulk’s voice for the show’s first season, but when he died in 1979, Napier took over. Neither voice actor was credited for their work on the series.

Sadly, of the above cast members, only one is still with us.

Whenever Bill Bixby turned into the Hulk, his eyes would briefly glow green, and then Bixby would be replaced, via clever editing, with Ferrigno wearing a tattered version of Bixby’s costume. Ferrigno was a rising star in the bodybuilding world at the time, and one can see his early competitive work (against Arnold Schwarzenegger) in the fascinating 1977 documentary “Pumping Iron.” It’s astonishing how much bodybuilding pageants boil down to psyching out one’s opponents.

Ferrigno, like many bodybuilders, was able to parlay his craft into an acting career, playing muscle-bound mythic figures in pablum films and monsters in adventure pictures. After “Hulk,” Ferrigno played Hercules in the Luigi Cozzi film from 1983, as well as in its 1985 sequel. He also played Sinbad in 1989’s “Sinbad of the Seven Seas,” once again exposing his massive arms and chest. That same year, he was in the B-grade fighting movie “Cage,” the comedy “All’s Fair,” and the cop drama “Liberty & Bash” (playing Bash).

Although Ferrigno didn’t provide his voice for the Hulk in the 1970s series, but he did voice the character in a 1996 animated Hulk TV series. This was after three follow-up “Incredible Hulk” TV movies in 1988, 1989, and 1990. Ferrigno, also had the opportunity to growl and grunt as the big green guy in Ang Lee’s 2003 film “Hulk” and Louis Leterrier’s 2008 film “The Incredible Hulk” (unrelated to the TV series). Ferrigno also played muscled heroes in “Avengers Grimm” (wherein he played Iron John) and in “The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power.” These days Ferrigno, now 72, regularly appears at fan conventions, signing autographs and posing for pictures. He was most recently in the 2022 miniseries “The Offer.”

Bixby, sadly, passed away in 1993, and Colvin in 2005. Brooke died back in 1986, and, as mentioned, Ted Cassidy died in 1979. Napier, meanwhile, died in 2011. Only Ferrigno remains.