Been wondering what Ultron’s done since Age of Ultron? VisionQuest’s James Spader spills

Right, so Ultron fans have been wondering for years what exactly happened to the MCU's sharp-tongued murderbot after Avengers: Age of Ultron. Instead of being scrubbed out for good, it turns out Marvel tucked the villain away in a bizarre little digital corner, and honestly, the details are funnier than anyone expected. If you thought Ultron just got wiped out and forgotten, you’ve clearly never met a Marvel screenwriter with a streaming series to fill.

Ultron’s Unlikely 'Time Out'

VisionQuest is finally pulling back the curtain on what’s become of Ultron, thanks to James Spader stepping back in to voice him. In a recent chat with Rotten Tomatoes, Spader explained that Ultron’s basically been 'serving a sentence' inside Vision’s head. Don’t picture some bleak data dungeon either – apparently, Ultron’s got access to the internet, telly, and a library of historical material to keep him company. And yes, Spader insists he’s not making that up. Here’s how Spader put it in the interview:

Those are all truths.

Only in Marvel would a genocidal AI spend years locked away with broadband and Netflix, but that’s not even the weirdest bit.

Painting, Mayhem—and a Massive Beard

According to Spader, Ultron’s picked up 'painting' as a hobby and is still, predictably, 'making trouble'. It’s not exactly arts and crafts time, either – his relationship with Vision is as tense and weird as ever. Spader summed up the dynamic as 'He’s in the house,' adding that Ultron has a 'love/hate' thing going on with Vision and couldn’t really care less about the other AIs floating around.

And if you assumed Ultron’s stayed menacing, wait for this: Paul Bettany says the villain’s sporting an outrageous beard. We’re talking 'Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s beard', allegedly big enough to 'hide a badger' inside. Not quite the look Tony Stark’s world-ending android had first time round, is it?

VisionQuest helps clear up how Ultron survived at all, considering Vision looked to have deleted him at the end of Age of Ultron. Turns out, Vision just imprisoned Ultron’s consciousness in his own mind instead of wiping him. Now, Ultron’s stuck sharing head-space with the likes of J.A.R.V.I.S., F.R.I.D.A.Y., E.D.I.T.H., DUM-E, and U. It’s genuinely a bonkers sitcom setup, whether they meant it or not.

Disney+ drops the first of eight episodes of VisionQuest on 14 October 2026.

• James Spader returns as Ultron, locked inside Vision’s mind
• Ultron’s ‘prison’ includes internet, telly, and history books
• Apparently, Ultron paints and causes mayhem during his sentence
• Paul Bettany claims Ultron now sports a massive beard
• Series to feature a whole host of Marvel’s classic AIs