Mark Ruffalo felt "pressure" portraying The Hulk in The Avengers.

The 44-year-old actor took on the role of the green monster for the first time in the superhero movie, but he was nervous about following in the footsteps of "great artists" Edward Norton and Eric Bana, who previously played the part in 2008's The Incredible Hulk and 2003 movie Hulk respectively.

"Yeah there was pressure, I was definitely aware of the great artists who came before and did it and I knew I had a responsibility to get the part right and do it justice," he said.

Despite feeling anxious about portraying The Hulk, Mark believes he was "born to play the part" because he thinks the green monster was the "coolest" comic book character. Speaking at the European Premiere of The Avengers at Westfield London's Vue Cinema Thursday night, he added, "I was born to play the part. When I was a kid I most identified with The Hulk and I was a big fan of his and out of any of the comic book characters he was the one I thought was the coolest."

The Avengers hits theaters on May 4.