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As “The Incredible Hulk” shows, Edward Norton excels at Jekyll-and-Hyde roles

I’ll admit it. When I heard that Edward Norton was starring in “The Incredible Hulk,” I had my doubts.

For starters, Norton is a tall, nebbish actor known more for smarts and swagger than kicking butt. He tends to star in anguished dramas and politically minded polemics — films closer to Ang Lee’s angst-ridden “Hulk” than most superhero romps. In other words, Norton doesn’t exactly scream “action star.”

Watching “The Incredible Hulk” this summer, however, I realized that Marvel couldn’t have made a better choice.

Directed by Louis Leterrier, “The Incredible Hulk” showcases Norton’s uniquely chameleon-like talent. As Dr. Bruce Banner, he’s a mild-mannered scientist searching for a cure. As the Hulk, he’s a wounded, confused monster grasping at his lost humanity.

“The Incredible Hulk” is now available on video.

Here are four other roles that show off Norton’s split personality.

“Primal Fear” (1996)

It’s the film that made Norton’s career.

When the archbishop of Chicago is found brutally murdered, the only suspect is Aaron Stampler (Norton), a soft-spoken Southern altar boy with no alibi and one hell of a potential motive.

He claims he’s innocent. Defense attorney Martin Vail (Richard Gere) claims his client is innocent. So who killed Archbishop Rushman?

Edward Norton, looking far younger than his 28 years, pulls the filmic equivalent of a hat trick in “Primal Fear” — effortlessly luring the audience into one assumption and then pulling the rug out from under our collective feet. He makes an otherwise predictable courtroom drama positively electric. He even manages to coax a better performance out of Gere.

The film netted Norton the first of two Oscar nominations; the second would be for “American History X.”

“American History X” (1998)

If “Primal Fear” revealed Edward Norton’s potential, “American History X” showed exactly what he could do.

Norton plays Derek, a cocky neo-Nazi embittered by the decline of his Los Angeles neighborhood and the murder of his firefighter father. Encouraged by a manipulative older man, he climbs the ranks of the local Aryan gang — alienating his family and winning the admiration of his younger brother, Danny (Edward Furlong, also good).

When Derek brutally assaults a trio of black men, he’s sent to prison, where he learns some hard lessons about bigotry. He returns home enlightened with a new sense of purpose — only to discover that his little brother has become a skinhead.

Norton gives a powerful, impassioned performance as a troubled young man who learns the error of his ways.

“Fight Club” (1999)

Director David Fincher had a brilliant idea when casting “Fight Club.”

First, find an actor brimming with confidence and primal sexuality. Someone good-looking, muscular, with a hidden quirk. Someone like, say, Brad Pitt.

Then cast a weedy WASP with loads of untapped aggression, a beanpole who looks like he’d blow over in a stiff wind. In other words, Edward Norton.

Norton, credited only as “Narrator,” is essential to this testosterone-charged thriller about men breaking free of the bonds of society. He’s the perfect foil to Pitt and a pretty convincing Everyman as well.

“The Score” (2001)

A standard heist film, “The Score” got more press for the on-set battle between Marlon Brando and director Frank Oz, than for its familiar plot.

Robert DeNiro stars as Nick Wells, a professional safe cracker who’s contemplating retirement. His partner Max (Marlon Brando) and a kid with inside information (Edward Norton) convince him to try for one last score.

The film itself is forgettable, but it’s worth seeing just to witness two screen giants — DeNiro and Brando — trade lines with a shining new star.

Norton plays two capable characters here: Jackie, an upstart punk with big plans, and his workplace alter-ego, a mentally challenged janitor.