The former Mr. Universe Lou Ferrigno was admired around the globe because of his charismatic personality and his portrayal as the ‘Incredible Hulk.’ Ferrigno’s childhood was filled with difficulties also faced bullying in school. Recently, he unveiled the reason behind his fascination with the comic-book superhero Hulk and it helped him become the legend of bodybuilding.

Ferrigno appeared in the Weekly Show with David J. Maloney. In this video, he talked about how his childhood experiences played a significant role in setting him on the path to becoming the Hulk and Hercules.

Lou Ferrigno shared why he was intrigued by ‘Hulk’

While discussing his childhood, he mentioned that he was drawn to the Hulk because, as a young kid, he used to read magazines and comic books. Reading about super-hero helped him escape the pain of overcoming hearing and speech problems.

For Ferrigno, The Hulk was a superhero, “the reason why I like the Hulk so much is because it was the only uh superhero where you see the muscles they didn’t have a costume.” He felt a connection to the character as a sensitive creature who fought against obstacles and related to that. This was the main reason for him to develop an obsession with reading about himself and later become the ‘Incredible Hulk’ himself. However, his story didn’t end here. He further articulated that he was ‘Hulk’ his whole life.

He mentioned facing diversity and being ridiculed for reading comic books in school, but he loved them nonetheless. His passion for comic books opened doors for him in bodybuilding. Inspired by the superheroes, he developed a gigantic physique. He embraced the idea of being powerful like his superhero idols.

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His journey: from facing challenges to becoming Hulk himself

The Host further asked about his transformations during the years. The 72-year-old shared that he was not only always the biggest in his class, recounting that he was thin in high school. However, gradually, he grew in size with intense training. He further shared that besides his hearing and speech issues, he faced challenges such as getting into fights. He learned to defend himself, and his passion led him to consider competing in bodybuilding. He began competing when he was just 19 years old.

However, due to his comic-book reading addiction, people used to make fun of him the entire time. Despite these hurdles, he never gave up on the dream of becoming a Hulk himself. Later, in 1977 he played his first role as the Hulk in the TV series. He played the role from 1977 to 1982, apart from the series, he also featured in TV films as well. He last appeared as Hulk in 2015.

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