Whedon drops by Hall H to reveal title and teaser trailer.
Following Marvel’s impressive panel for ‘Thor: The Dark World,’ ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier,’ and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy,’ Marvel President Kevin Feige had one last surprise for those lucky enough to be seated in San Diego Comic-Con’s famed Hall H, none other than geek god himself, ‘Avengers Assemble’ director Joss Whedon.
Taking to the stage, Whedon told the audience, “I know it’s time to go and I don’t have a lot to say, but I have something to add.” The lights in Hall H go down as an animated clip begins to play on the big screen overhead. Quotes from ‘Avengers Assemble’ are heard over shots of something metal being hammered. The camera pulls out to reveal Ultron’s helmet, then the highly-anticipated sequel’s new title: ‘The Avengers: Age of Ultron.’
Making his first proper appearance in 1968’s Avengers #55 – after an unnamed cameo in the previous issue – Ultron is identified as Ultron-5, the living automaton, although the villainous robot’s origin was unknown. It’s not until later issues that it is revealed that Ultron is the creation of Dr. Hank Pym, aka Ant Man. Created for the greater good and based on Pym’s brain patterns, Ultron gradually developed its own intelligence and rebelled, deciding that all of humanity must be destroyed.
The title for the ‘Avengers Assemble’ sequel comes from the recent 10-issue crossover storyline by Brian Michael Bendis that saw the return of ever-adaptive artificial intelligence and his conquest of the earth. How close Whedon will remain to the source material is unknown.
Update:
Talking to Marvel’s Ryan “Agent M” Penagos and Lorraine Cink, Whedon revealed that while the sequel takes its name from the recent mini-series, they would be crafting their own take on the origin of Ultron. Check out the video below for more.
‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ is currently locked in for a May 2015 release.