5) Hulk
The Incredible Hulk is the reverse of the other heroes mentioned here. While they first flopped on the movies and then succeeded on TV, Dr. Banner’s initial popularity on the small screen overshadowed his later movie appearances.
In one of the first mainstream comic book shows, The Incredible Hulk series ran from 1978 to 1982, plus a few TV movies that went on until 1990. The show is responsible for making the Jade Giant the icon of popular culture he is today. It’s also the reason there’ve been two solo movies about him. Neither, sadly, being that good.
2003’s Hulk, from Ang Lee, was a noble attempt to add some depth to the hero but it was not what fans wanted. Meanwhile, 2007’s The Incredible Hulk was guilty of having a seriously misleading title. At least Mark Ruffalo has now finally given us a great big screen Bruce Banner.
4) Batgirl
There’s also another hero who smashed it on TV before failing on film: Commissioner Gordon’s daughter, Babs Gordon herself – Batgirl. Introduced in the 1960s Batman TV show in an attempt to boost ratings, Batgirl instantly became a feminist icon and was quickly introduced into the comics. Today, she is a core part of the Batfamily.
Unfortunately, her transition to the movies wasn’t as simple. Barbara, as Alfred’s niece this time, had the misfortune to appear in Joel Schumacher’s infamous Batman & Robin, as played by Alicia Silverstone. Needless to say, nothing came out of that movie untainted.
In 2016, Batgirl got another stab at the big screen in the animated Batman: The Killing Joke, which had a limited theatrical release in both the US and the UK. Sadly, instead of redeeming her, it took away all her agency and even included a gross sex scene with Batman.
