You can probably guess from the post-colon title of Joss Whedon‘s follow-up to the $1.5 billion  earning superhero collective that at some point a dude named Ultron is going to be involved. Heralded as a beloved Marvel supervillain, Ultron is a sentient robot, who will now be played by James Spader.

It’s yet unclear where Spader will solely be providing the voice for a CGI character or if he will someone be incorporated physically into his robo-counterpart but one thing is clear: this is a bit of inspired casting from the quip-slingin’ Whedon. Spader has a penchant for fast talking (Lincoln) but has also proved that he can be calculating, cold and completely lack sympathy (The Office). Put that talent behind Whedon’s knack for dialogue and I think you cook up a winning recipe.

While the suits over at Marvel are claiming that Ultron will have his own sort of origin story for the sequel, not necessarily pulled from the comics, his powers might be similar to those quoted on his Wikipedia page:”Common powers include superhuman levels of strength, speed, stamina, durability, and reflexes; flight at subsonic speeds; and various offensive weapons such as concussive blasts of energy fired from its optical sensors and hands, and an “encephalo-ray”, which places victims into a deathlike coma. The latter ray also allows Ultron to mesmerize and mind-control victims, or implant subliminal hypnotic commands within their minds to be enacted at a later time.”

The Avengers: Age of Ultron is directed by Joss Whedon and stars Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, James Spader and Samuel L. Jackson. It hits theaters May 1, 2015.

Follow Silver Screen Riot on Facebook
Follow Silver Screen Riot on Twitter