Ultron (/ˈʌltrɒn/) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist John Buscema, the character first appeared as an unnamed character in The Avengers #54 (July 1968), with his first full appearance in The Avengers #55 (August 1968). He is a highly intelligent self-aware artificial intelligence in a robot body who develops a god complex and a grudge against his creator Hank Pym. His initial goal to destroy humanity in an attempt at creating world peace has brought him into conflict with the Avengers. Stories often end in Ultron's destruction, only for new offshoot iterations of the robot to be built of varying morals, including the superhero Ultron-12 (Mark Twelve).
Ultron's physical body is made of a durable alloy (typically either Adamantium or Vibranium), and he has manifested various superpowers. These vary between different stories but generally include superhuman strength, speed, and agility, flight, and energy projection. The character usually operates alone or accompanied by legions of copies of his own robotic form known as Ultron Drones. Ultron is notable for being the first character in Marvel Comics to wield the fictional metal alloy adamantium[2] and for his (in-story) creation of the Vision.[3][2] In the alternate continuity of Old Man Logan, Ultron-8 is the morally good stepfather of the supervillain Ashley.
Debuting in the Silver Age of Comic Books, Ultron has since featured in Marvel products across different media, such as animated television series and video games. Tom Kane and Jim Meskimen are among the actors who have portrayed the character via voice acting. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), James Spader portrayed Ultron in his first live-action appearance in the Marvel Studios film Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015),[4] while Ross Marquand voiced alternate universe versions in the Disney+ animated series What If...? (2021) and the film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022). James Spader will return to play the character again in the upcoming Disney+ series VisionQuest (2026).[5]
