Joss Whedon on Why Hank Pym Isn't in AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

The two Marvel movies coming out this year include Ant-Man and Avengers: Age of Ultron, but it doesn't seem like there's going to be much of a connection between the films. As some of you probably already know, Hank Pym was the character who originally created Ultron in the comics. That's not how it's going to go down in the cinematic universe, though: Tony Stark will be the man who brings Ultron to life. If you're wondering why Whedon and Marvel took that detour, he kind of blames Edgar Wright. This is what he said in an interview with Empire:

"Of all the heat I’ve ever taken, not having Hank Pym was one of the bigger things. But the fact of the matter was, Edgar had him first and by virtue of what Edgar was doing, there was no way for me to use him in this."

Wright was working on Ant-Man years before Marvel Studios knew what they were even going to really be doing with their movies, so it's not like he took the character away from Whedon on purpose. Whedon basically just had to use the tools and characters he was given to tell a story that fits in with what Marvel is trying to do. The director went on to explain:

"I also thought it was a bridge too far. Ultron needs to be the brainchild of the Avengers, and in the world of the Avengers and the MCU, Tony Stark is that guy. Banner has elements of that guy – we don’t really think of him as being as irresponsible as Tony Stark, but the motherfucker tested gamma radiation on himself, with really terrible, way-worse-than-Tony-Stark results.
"It didn’t make sense to introduce a third scientist, a third sciencetician, to do that. It was hard for me, because I grew up on the comics, to dump that, but at the end of the day, it’s a more interesting relationship between Tony and Ultron if Tony was once like, ‘You know what would be a really great idea?’ They’re doing what they always do – which is jump in headfirst, and then go, ‘Sorry, world!’ But you have to make it their responsibility without just making it their fault."

I'm completely OK with how Whedon is handling Ultron in the film. It makes complete sense to me, and lot of other fans. Of course, I'm sure there are a few hardcore comic fans out there that are a little annoyed by the changes. It's just something they're going to have to live with. In the end, it's going to be a badass movie that we're all going to have a blast watching!

Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in theaters on May 1st, and Ant-Man will follow on July 17th.

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