Edward Norton explains in an NPR interview that the reason he stopped playing his superhero character "The Hulk" was that he "wanted more diversity" and that he "didn't want to have an association with one thing in any way degrade my effectiveness as an actor."
Back in 2010, Marvel Comics and Edward Norton parted ways in what seemed like a situation with "some real rage," according to Jeff Labrecque of Entertainment Weekly.
On July 11, 2010, Marvel Studio's Kevin Feige had made the following exclusive statement to Hitflix with regards to their decision to drop Norton as the titular hero:
"Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members. The Avengers demands players who thrive working as part of an ensemble, as evidenced by Robert, Chris H, Chris E, Sam, Scarlett, and all of our talented casts."
In response, Edward Norton had posted a Facebook communiqué to his fans, saying that he was "so appreciative of the outpouring of support from fans of the Hulk", and that he "sincerely hoped it could happen... but it hasn't turned out as we all hoped."
However, during his interview with NPR's Terry Gross, Norton made it appear as though the whole affair was his choice after all.
"My feeling was that I experimented and experienced what I wanted to. I really, really enjoyed it. And yet, I looked at the balance of time in life that one spends not only making those sorts of films but then especially putting them out, and the obligations that rightly come with that. There were just a lot of things-I wanted more diversity. I sort of chose to continue on my path of having a diversity of experiences."
"I think you can sort of do anything once, but if you do it too many times, it can become a suit that's hard to take off, in other peoples' eyes. And if I had continued on with it, I wouldn't have made Moonrise Kingdom, or Grand Budapest, or Birdman, because those all overlapped with [Avengers]. And those were more the priority for me, but I continue to be a fan and I'm really, really happy I got to do it once," Norton added.