A Rocky Road Ahead for The Incredible Hulk

Marvel and its distribution partner, Universal Pictures, expect The Incredible Hulk to be nothing short of a blockbuster, citing strong sales for a newly introduced Hulk comic book series as one reason for optimism. "We are really proud about how the new film came out," said David Maisel, chairman of Marvel Studios. "The 2003 movie was like test-driving a car. We were able to see what people liked and did not." But signs of trouble abound, leading to lip-biting among some Marvel investors, Hulk fans and movie theater owners. "There are people who clearly don’t think it looks good and are expecting a bomb," said Doug Creutz, an entertainment analyst at Cowen & Company.

The trailer, engineered to vanquish memories of the 2003 film, arrived last month and instantly polarized the comic book crowd. The look of the new Hulk -- meaner and greener -- won praise from some fans online, but several influential tastemakers held their noses. Entertainment Weekly pronounced the computer-generated effects "totally fake-looking," while obsessedwithfilm.com deemed the project "just hideous."

And then there's the bickering among the creative team. Mr. Norton and Marvel, which has the right of final approval on the film, have sparred in recent weeks over trims, among other issues, said studio executives involved, who asked to remain anonymous as they were not authorized to speak publicly. Mr. Norton -- who was hired to rewrite the script along with playing the lead -- has made it clear he won't cooperate with publicity plans if he’s not happy with the final product, these people said.

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Even Stan Lee, a creator of the Hulk and Iron Man characters, seems underenthused about the prospects of his green baby. "My prediction is that it will be more popular than the last one," he said. His Iron Man prediction? "Enormous hit," he said.