General Thaddeus E. "Thunderbolt" Ross (also known as the Red Hulk) is a fictional character who appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics featuring the Hulk. Ross is a United States military officer, the father of Betty Ross, ex-father-in-law of Glenn Talbot, father-in-law of Bruce Banner, and the head of the gamma bomb project that turned Banner into the Hulk. After the creation of the Hulk, Ross pursues the creature with a growing obsession, and, after learning that Banner and the Hulk are one and the same, Ross hunts Banner as well. In 2008, Ross was transformed into the Red Hulk to better combat his nemesis. The character has been merchandized in various products, such as toys and statues, and appeared in numerous media adaptations, including animated television series, video games, and live-action feature films. He was portrayed by Sam Elliott in the 2003 film Hulk, by William Hurt in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films The Incredible Hulk (2008), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), and Black Widow (2021), and by Harrison Ford in the MCU films Captain America: New World Order (2024) and Thunderbolts (2024), taking over the role after Hurt's death. Publication history Thunderbolt Ross first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1 (May 1962) and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby as a nemesis for the Hulk. He was a recurring character throughout this series. His character origin was revealed in The Incredible Hulk #291. The Red Hulk first appeared in Hulk vol. 3 #1 (January 2008), created by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuiness, but his identity as Ross was not revealed until later. The origin of Red Hulk was revealed in Hulk #23. Red Hulk began appearing as a regular character in Avengers vol. 4, from issue #7 (January 2011) through its final issue #34 (January 2013). His popularity resulted in him being used as a main character in the 2012 Thunderbolts series by Daniel Way and Steve Dillon. He also appeared in the issues #1–3 of the 2011 series The Avenging Spider-Man (November 2008) by Zeb Wells and Joe Madureira as a team-up character for Spider-Man. Fictional character biography Ross grew up in a military environment with both his father and paternal grandfather in the military. Ross is the Air Force general in charge of Bruce Banner's gamma bomb project. His daughter, Betty, takes a liking