Stan Lee was angered by his cameo in The Trial of the Incredible Hulk in 1989.
Lee’s Cameo
The Marvel legend was triggered over being barred from leaping out of a jury box and replaced with a stunt double after David Banner ripped it up as the beast while testifying. The scene is in a dream sequence where Banner has a nightmare about his upcoming trial.
In 2004, Lee recalled to the Television Academy, “I was the foreman of the jury sitting in the jury box, and in one scene, the Hulk gets angry, and he reaches down, and he lifts up the whole jury box with all 12 jurors.”
“He only lifts it about two feet, and they jump out of the box in fear. Now obviously there’s a hydraulic lift under that. I mean, Lou Ferrigno wasn’t lifting it.”
“I was in the jury box and having a great time with my little cameo, and then the Hulk started lifting it, and [director] Bill [Bixby] said: ‘Cut! OK, Stan, you get out of there.'”
“I said, ‘What did I do wrong?’ He said, ‘Nothing. We have to put a stunt man in there now because you’ve gotta jump out of the jury box.'”
“I said, ‘It’s two feet, I could step out!’ He said, ‘No, that’s considered a stunt, you’ve gotta get out, a stunt man’s gotta do it.'”
“I was so angry, my big chance, and I couldn’t even jump two feet! But it was great.”
Working on the Show
Stan loved working with Bill and Lou, saying, “Bill Bixby, who played David Banner and turned into the Hulk, is one of the nicest guys I have ever known.”
“So was Lou Ferrigno, who played the Hulk. This big, muscular guy is one of the sweetest, gentlest guys you could ever meet.”
“Everything about that show was good.”
Stan Lee’s Impact
Stan – who created Spider-Man, Captain America, and Iron Man – died of cardiac arrest, respiratory failure, and congestive heart failure in November 2018. He was 95 years old.
Marvel fans got to interact with the comic book legend differently in 2025. It was through an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered hologram at Los Angeles Comic Con in September 2025.
Bob Sabouni, Head of Stan Lee Legacy Programs for Kartoon Studios, talked to The Hollywood Reporter about the exhibit. “We’ll never put words in his mouth that aren’t in line with things he spoke about in his lifetime.”
“Fortunately, with decades of footage capturing his thoughts on so many subjects, we can build a voice that stays true, not always word for word, but always faithful in spirit, context, and intent.”