Paul Bettany returned to the Marvel spotlight Friday night, joining James Spader on the D23 stage in Anaheim to unveil the first trailer for “VisionQuest,” a series that will close out the trilogy that began with “WandaVision” in 2021. The eight-episode Disney+ show premieres October 14.
Bettany reflected on his character’s long history before the footage rolled, noting Vision has served as an Avenger, a father and Wanda Maximoff’s partner, and has died “a number of times,” which he joked complicates long-term financial planning. He added a line addressing Marvel’s tendency to bring characters back from the dead, saying no one is truly gone unless studio chief Kevin Feige says so.
The trailer picks up after White Vision’s exit at the close of “WandaVision,” when the character absorbed the original Vision’s memories and declared “I am Vision” before flying off. In “VisionQuest,” he has gone into hiding after escaping those who sought to weaponize him, and searches for purpose by consulting AI personas stored in his own programming, including J.A.R.V.I.S., E.D.I.T.H. and Ultron.
That search takes a surreal turn: much of the footage unfolds inside Vision’s mind, depicted as a strange mansion where these digital personalities appear in human form. Spader’s Ultron, absent from the MCU since his 2015 debut in “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” shows up in both his familiar robotic body and a new human incarnation.
Vision’s isolation ends when a bounty on his head forces him into the open alongside Thomas Shepard, a mysterious boy who may be a reincarnation of his and Wanda’s son. James D’Arcy also returns as J.A.R.V.I.S., reprising a role he has played since “Agent Carter,” while Ruaridh Mollica joins as an older version of Tommy Maximoff, previously portrayed by Jett Klyne.
Terry Matalas, the showrunner behind “Star Trek: Picard,” created the series and directs several episodes. The trailer had screened privately at New York Comic Con roughly ten months earlier before its public unveiling at D23.
