There was really only one Internet-crushing reveal during the Marvel Studios panel at Comic-Con, but what it was has had journos buzzing for the last two days. Joss Whedon announcing The Avengers: Age of Ultron is the title of his upcoming Marvel sequel set off a whirlwind of possibilities, but mostly it let us in on who the primary villain for the film would be. The Age of Ultron storyline in the comics is about as recent as they come, only concluding less than two months ago, and while nobody expects Whedon's story to resemble that time-traveling plotline, it sounds as if major elements of Ultron's origin are going to be changed.
Ultron is an evil, sentient android who is basically unstoppable because he evolves after every battle. He was created by Hank Pym, the Avenger known as Ant-Man (or Giant-Man or Yellowjacket), who has his own film coming from director Edgar Wright. Ultron was also responsible for the creation of Vision, the android Avenger who is rumored to be on the team in the sequel, possibly played by Vin Diesel. But the Ant-Man film doesn't open until months after 'Ultron', and Whedon insists Pym isn't really needed for this particular story. He tells i09...
Whedon: “We don't have to have him. It works very simply -- this is Marvel cinema, not Marvel comics. One thing [Marvel Studios president] Kevin Feige has a genius for is knowing what to hold onto and what to let go of. You can invoke the feeling you had and play with the characters you love and remain true to the needs of the film.”
He would clarify it further while talking to HeyUGuys, saying outright that Pym won't be in the film at all...
Whedon: "We’re doing our own version of the origin story of Ultron. The other thing is, in the origin story, there was Hank Pym. So a lot of people assumed that he was going to be in the mix, but he’s not. Because we’re basically taking the things from the comics for the movies that we need and can use. A lot of stuff has to fall by the wayside. Ultron was their chief villain. He’s been the Avengers villain for so long. I was amazed anybody was surprised that it was going to be him in the movie. We are crafting our own version of it where his origin comes more directly from the Avengers we already know about.”
The biggest change coming from the Ultron news was that it changed our view of Thanos, who has been assumed to be the main villain. But now the always chatty Feige has confirmed he'll be shifted over to Guardians of the Galaxy, which consists of characters who all have a personal score to settle with him. We also won't be seeing Ultron anywhere until The Avengers: Age of Ultron. But will there be clues popping up in the other films? That much we still don't know.
