Marvel's Next TV Show Will Make You Reappraise Avengers: Age Of Ultron... Again

Published Sep 5, 2026, 4:30 PM EDT Ben Sherlock is a Tomatometer-approved film and TV critic who runs the massively underrated YouTube channel I Got Touched at the Cinema. Before working at Screen Rant, Ben wrote for Game Rant, Taste of Cinema, Comic Book Resources, and BabbleTop. He's also an indie filmmaker, a standup comedian, and an alumnus of the School of Rock. Opinions on Avengers: Age of Ultron have fluctuated massively in the decade-and-a-bit since it hit theaters. Back in 2015, Age of Ultron was praised as a satisfying, if somewhat repetitive follow-up to Joss Whedon’s first Avengers movie. It couldn’t possibly feel as groundbreaking as the first film — the ambition of that Phase One crossover was unprecedented — but it was a worthwhile return for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. The sequel culminates in yet another big battle against yet another army of faceless goons, but the fact that Tony Stark and Bruce Banner created Ultron themselves invited some interesting thematic parallels to Frankenstein. Scenes like the party at Avengers Tower and the second-act stop at Hawkeye’s farm marked a refreshing change of pace from the usual rapid, plot-focused Marvel movie momentum. It slowed down and gave us a chance to see these characters in their everyday lives, which happens all the time in the comics but rarely gets translated to the big screen. There’s a lot to love in Age of Ultron, not the least of which being James Spader’s chilling performance as the titular cyborg. But it’s not without its flaws — Black Widow gets shortchanged with a toxic romance, Ultron doesn’t live up to the threat he initially poses, and the movie spends way too much time setting up the next phase of the MCU and not enough time building up the “age” of Ultron (it’s more like a few days, a week tops) — and, as the years have passed, that’s what people have focused on. Avengers: Age Of Ultron Was A Hit At The Time, But Its Reputation Worsened Jay Maidment/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/courtesy Everett Collection When it kicked off the summer blockbuster season of 2015, Avengers: Age of Ultron was every bit the smash hit that its predecessor had been. It grossed another billion-and-a-half dollars at the worldwide box office, and it landed a 75% score on Rotten Tomatoes, indicating a mostly positive (if not ecstatic) response from critics. At the time, Marvel fans were reasonably satisfied, and Ultron successfully kept the hype going ahead of Captain America: Civil War the following year. But, in the decade since, as dozens more Marvel movies have flooded the market and everyone has continued updating their overall rankings, the reception to Age of Ultron has soured. It’s now considered one of the weaker MCU entries, and it’s the most likely chapter to get skipped in an Avengers movie marathon. Next month, when Marvel Studios drops its latest streaming show on Disney+, it’ll reignite the discourse around Age of Ultron. VisionQuest is the third and final chapter in the trilogy that started with WandaVision and continued with Agatha All Along, and it seems to be taking us straight into Vision’s mind palace. There, we’ll see human embodiments of all the different A.I.s that Tony created over the years — including Ultron, played by a returning Spader. VisionQuest Will Spark A Second Reappraisal For Avengers: Age Of Ultron The reunion of Vision and Ultron will surely spark a second reevaluation of Age of Ultron. Their philosophical debate about life and beauty is one of the best scenes in the movie, and it remains one of the most profound dialogue exchanges in the entire MCU. Age of Ultron already got reappraised once, but it was in a negative light. This time, we’ll start seeing Marvel fans making the case that Age of Ultron is good, actually. Social media platforms will be flooded with posts about how Age of Ultron holds up, and it’s an underrated gem. Since VisionQuest is a direct continuation of the stories and themes established in Avengers: Age of Ultron, it’s probably a good idea to rewatch the movie before VisionQuest premieres on Disney+ on October 14. Who knows? It might be a lot better than you remember (especially if you remember it very harshly). VisionQuest Release Date October 14, 2026 Network Disney+ Showrunner Terry Matalas Directors Christopher J. Byrne, Gandja Monteiro Cast James D'Arcy J.A.R.V.I.S.