How Les Misérables Inspired The Creation Of A Classic Marvel Comics TV Adaptation

Victor Hugo's classic novel "Les Misérables" may not be the most obvious inspiration for a Marvel television series, but it strangely played a key role in bringing one of the most beloved comic book-inspired shows to life. Long before the dawn of Marvel Studios' various Disney+ series, one of the earliest shows based on a Marvel character to capture audiences' imaginations was "The Incredible Hulk" — and it wouldn't exist without the Victor Hugo novel.

Starring Bill Bixby as David Bruce Banner and bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno as his green-skinned alter ego, "The Incredible Hulk" ran on CBS from 1977 to 1982. Developed by Kenneth Johnson, the mind behind "V" and "The Bionic Woman," the program began life as two made-for-TV movies that established the Hulk's origin and proved popular enough to warrant the production of an ongoing weekly series. Johnson initially had little interest in adapting a Marvel comic for television, but it was "Les Misérables" that provided the unexpected inspiration for his take on the Hulk.

Speaking to Cinema Retro, Johnson revealed the moment he decided to take on the project. "I was in the middle of reading 'Les Misérables,' which my wife Susie had given to me, and suddenly it just clicked," he explained. "I could take Victor Hugo and, also, certain bits from Robert Louis Stevenson's 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' and the whole idea of Greek tragic hubris." From those building blocks, he cracked his take on the Hulk. Of course, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" had also been one of Stan Lee's key inspirations in creating the character in the first place.

It wasn't always the plan for "The Incredible Hulk" to become a full series. Even after the two initial TV movies — the pilot film of the same name and "The Return of the Incredible Hulk," later re-titled "Death in the Family" — there was some pushback from CBS on pursuing it any further. "What happened was that the original buy from CBS was for two movies," Johnson revealed. "I chose to do it in a way that the first one would be the genesis, and the second one would show how it would work as a series."

Despite that, CBS president Bud Grant didn't understand how the series would work. As Johnson explained it, it was no mean feat convincing the network to greenlight "The Incredible Hulk," even with the head of Universal on board. "I think it took us three meetings with Bud Grant at CBS to finally convince him to try it as a series," Johnson added. "But he still didn't have any faith in it."

Ultimately, the "gamble" paid off. "The Incredible Hulk" ran five seasons on the network before being revived for three made-for-TV movies in the late '80s. Even today, the program is still fondly remembered as an early Marvel television classic, one honored most recently by the Disney+ series "She-Hulk: Attorney at Law."