It’s been a long time since we’ve seen James Spader’s Ultron in the MCU. When Avengers: Age of Ultron was released in the spring of 2015, the creator of Ultron in Marvel Comics, Hank Pym, wasn’t even in the MCU yet (that would come later that year with Ant-Man). Now, with the robotic big bad returning for the upcoming VisionQuest show on Disney+, it’s time to get reacquainted with Ultron.
In an interview with Rotten Tomatoes, James Spader caught us up on what Ultron has been up to since we last saw him in 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. “He’s been in prison, where he’s had access to the internet, television, history, and he’s just been consuming,” Spader said about Ultron, which is dangerously close to how I’d describe myself in 2020, “and he’s been painting and making trouble.”
Now, the last time Ultron had access to the internet, he immediately turned evil. One now has to wonder: has Ultron watched Skibidi Toilet compilations? Does he have nuanced thoughts about the absurdist YouTube series? What about Clavicular?
To add more questions to this rhetorical, hypothetical pile, what kinds of subjects does Ultron like to paint? Are they any different than the dogs, war veteran portraits, flowers, and bathtubs that George W. Bush has painted in his retirement? Why would a machine like Ultron take up painting? I’m going to stop myself there before I fall down a rabbit hole.
VisionQuest will begin streaming on Disney+ on October 14, 2026.