VISIONQUEST Funko Pops Reveal First Look at Human Vision and Ultron, Hinting at the Disney+ Series' Biggest Mysteries
Marvel fans just got an unexpected preview of VisionQuest, and it came from a place that's become surprisingly reliable when it comes to early reveals: Funko Pop! figures.
Two new collectibles tied to the upcoming Disney+ series have surfaced, giving us our first look at both the robotic and human-inspired appearances of Vision and Ultron.
While Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige kept TV announcements to a minimum during the studio's San Diego Comic-Con presentation, these figures have pulled back the curtain just enough to get fans talking.
Vision's robotic design looks almost exactly as fans remember him from WandaVision. The more intriguing reveal is his human appearance, which features him holding a newspaper titled Vision Today.
Previous reports have suggested that Vision's journey may lead him into the depths of his own consciousness, where he'll interact with various artificial intelligences that have become part of his mind.
If that's accurate, this human version of Vision could exist within a stylized reality similar to the sitcom-inspired world of Westview. It's only speculation for now, but the Funko design certainly adds fuel to that theory.
Ultron's robotic form is exactly what longtime Marvel fans would expect, closely resembling the villain's final appearance in Avengers: Age of Ultron. His human counterpart, however, is the real surprise.
Inspired by James Spader, the figure sports glasses, a beard, and an eccentric wardrobe that immediately raises questions about how Ultron will be portrayed in the series.
Last year, Paul Bettany teased just how unusual Vision's internal world will be. "One of the things that’s fun about that is that we finally get to see what it’s like inside Vision’s mind, and it’s more cluttered than you would think. He’s clearly been saving and copying and pasting [the AIs] to keep them alive inside his head."
He went on to explain that one familiar AI isn't exactly a welcome guest. "One of them, of course, has to be kept behind a pretty impressive firewall because he’s a psychopath. But [Ultron is] a clever one."
If Vision has been preserving fragments of different AIs inside his own consciousness, it opens the door for some fascinating interactions between old allies, dangerous enemies, and perhaps entirely new personalities.
I imagine the first trailer for the series will drop next month during D23 Expo. Marvel has also shared the official synopsis for the series:
"The Vision, rebooted and having escaped those who sought to use him as a weapon, has been in hiding. His quest for new meaning and discreet existence is interrupted when a bounty is placed on his head, forcing Vision to forge real connections and embrace found family if he's to survive."
The cast includes Paul Bettany as Vision, Ruaridh Mollica as Tommy Maximoff, James Spader as Ultron, T'Nia Miller as Jocasta, James D'Arcy as J.A.R.V.I.S., Orla Brady as F.R.I.D.A.Y., Emily Hampshire as E.D.I.T.H., Henry Lewis as D.U.M.-E (or Dum-E), Jonathan Sayer as U, Todd Stashwick as Paladin, and Faran Tahir as Raza. Terry Matalas serves as showrunner.
As the final chapter in the WandaVision trilogy, VisionQuest has plenty of expectations riding on it. If these first Funko Pop! reveals are any indication, the series is leaning into Vision's search for identity in ways that could get wonderfully weird, while bringing Ultron back into the picture in a form nobody expected.
VisionQuest premieres on Disney+ on October 14.