15 Behind-The-Scenes Facts In Age Of Ultron That Make You Open-Mouthed

The Avengers outperformed all predictions, assisting in the MCU becoming the most successful film franchise in history. It wasn't long before the studio began work on a sequel, and Avengers: Age of Ultron was released just a few years after the original film. Fans have analyzed Age of Ultron as they have every other MCU offering, but there's always something new to discover about Earth's Mightiest Heroes and some of the incredible battle sequences they've participated in.
This is especially true when considering some of the events that took place behind the scenes. There was a lot going on in Age of Ultron that wasn't disclosed until much later, and if you figure out what those things were, you'll want to go back and rewatch it.

1. Andy Serkis Did Far More Than Play Ulysses Klaue

Source: Marvel Studio

Andy Serkis may have gotten the role of Ulysses Klaue thanks to a random fan's online recommendation, but it was just part of his contribution to the film. Serkis is perhaps Hollywood's most gifted and experienced motion capture actor, having played a variety of iconic characters such as King Kong, Supreme Leader Snoke, and Gollum, to mention a few. He was first brought to the set of Age of Ultron because of his work as a motion capture artist.

2. Stan 'The Man' Lee's Favorite Cameo Is In 'Age of Ultron'

Source: Marvel Studio

"The Man" Stan Even before Marvel Comics was officially Marvel Comics, Lee was one of the earliest creators at the House of Ideas. He mostly worked as a writer and editor, but he also collaborated on the creation of several of Marvel Comics' Silver Age characters, including some shown in the film. He's also been making brief guest appearances for decades, even before the Marvel Cinematic Universe existed.

3. For Joss Whedon, James Spader Was The Only Option For Ultron

Source: Marvel Studio

Looking back, it's difficult to envision anyone other than James Spader playing Ultron. His voice carried the persona and humanized the android in an unusual way. Of course, the amazing actor not only provided Ultron's voice, but also the mo-cap work that brought him to life. Spader has a "hypnotic voice that can be eerily serene and fascinating while yet being quite human and hilarious," according to director Joss Whedon. Whedon never considered a different actor for the part.

4. A Lot Of Detail Went Into The Hulkbuster Armor

Source: Marvel Studio

Tony Stark's Hulkbuster suit had its big screen premiere in Avengers: Age of Ultron, and the concept took a long time to perfect. The power necessary to make the armor work is one of the most significant differences between it and the outfit Tony wears underneath. If you look closely, you can see an Arc Reactor on the chest, one on each knee, and four on the rear of the Hulkbuster armor.

5. Scarlett Johansson Worked With Three Stuntwomen To Hide Her Pregnancy

Source: Marvel Studio

Scarlett Johansson was pregnant during the filming of Avengers: Age of Ultron, thus the crew worked hard to keep the pregnancy hidden. Surprisingly, no scenes had to be cut, thanks in part to the efforts of three stuntwomen who worked on the film. After all, whereas pregnancy can be readily hidden on a sitcom, this was an action film.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, director Joss Whedon explained the situation: "She's not going to carry groceries for the entire movie. There were no scenes cut. 'We'll make it work,' we say."

6. Andy Serkis Was Cast To Play Klaue Because Of A Fan

Source: Marvel Studio

He got the gig because of a fan:: "When we thought of it, Jeremy [Latcham] went through and looked at images of Klaue online. Some fan had put out Andy Serkis as Klaue and, obviously, we were already working with Andy. He and his Imaginarium were guiding Mark [Ruffalo] and James [Spader] in their movement."

7. Ultron's Eyes Were Hard To Focus On For Many Of The Actors

Source: Marvel Studio

James Spader used a mo-cap costume to play Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron, which managed to capture the nuances of his character and play them out through remarkable VFX work. Spader's 5-foot-10-inch height, of course, posed a challenge, but a technique was devised to make him appear taller so that the other performers could look him in the eyes.

8. Joss Whedon Didn't Enjoy The Filmmaking Process... At All

Source: Marvel Studio

Joss Whedon's work on The Avengers was widely praised, thus it was a foregone conclusion that he'd return to direct the sequel. Whedon took the call, although he despised working on the film, describing it as "the hardest job I've ever done." The film was a huge hit, grossing over $1.4 billion at the international box office on a $250 million budget. Nonetheless, Whedon considers the film a failure.
"When I watch it, I just see "flaw, flaw, flaw, compromise, laziness, mistake." The reason I set out to make another film is because I wanted to make one that was better, and I wanted to up my game as a shooter and work harder on every aspect of it and sort of give myself up to it in a way that’s hard for me because I have a family. I started as a writer in low-budget TV, and there was always this element of, "This is good enough." And with this movie, I never wanted to say, "This is good enough."

9. Some Words Are Never Spoken... For Legal Reasons

Source: Marvel Studio

Wanda and Pietro Maximoff are two of the most intriguing characters introduced in Age of Ultron. They were known as Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver in the books, but they were never called that in the film. Wanda has only been referred to as the Scarlet Witch in WandaVision, and there's a fascinating reason why the MCU waited so long to acknowledge her. It all started when 20th Century Fox bought the X-Men film rights in 1994.

10. Joss Whedon Based A Lot Of His Choices On Westerns

Source: Marvel Studio

Joss Whedon, like many other directors, draws inspiration from the films he enjoys. It's not a coincidence if you watch Age of Ultron and detect certain connections or similarities to some of the best Westerns ever made on film. Whedon strongly depended on the genre to construct the picture, as he explained in the DVD commentary:
"[One] shot, some of you may know from The Searchers. I realized that I needed that moment for Cap. It’s very central to his whole theme about not being able to be home and live a normal life. I mentioned it to [producer] Jeremey Latcham, who was like, "Don’t say it!" But, as long as I don’t say anything on the DVD commentary, I should be fine and no one will know that I’m a thief"

11. Elizabeth Olsen Couldn't Resist Making Sounds While Using Her Powers

Source: Marvel Studio

Wanda Maximoff, Elizabeth Olsen's character in Avengers: Age of Ultron, with the extraordinary ability to manipulate both minds and materials. She does, however, have some difficulty using her abilities, which has occasionally hampered her effectiveness.
In an interview with BBC Radio 1, Olsen said that she produces sounds when casting her powers with her hands. She had to remind herself not to make any lip motions while doing this because it would ruin the scene. "It was absolutely something I was quite self-conscious about," she admitted.

12. There's A Bit Of 'Buffy' In 'Age of Ultron'

Source: Marvel Studio

There's more going on in the film than just Marvel, but you'd only notice if you were a die-hard admirer of another Joss Whedon creation: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Whedon is well-known for his work on the series, and he couldn't resist throwing in an Easter Egg referencing his prior work, as many directors do. Thor is transported to a distorted version of Asgard when he has his vision in the pool, where dark imagery includes The Wolf, The Ram, and the Hart, which is a tribute to Buffy.

13. Captain Marvel Was Supposed To Be Introduced At The End Of The Movie

Source: Marvel Studio

At the conclusion of Age of Ultron, a scene with all of the new Avengers members appears, suggesting who will be joining the team in the future. War Machine, Wanda Maximoff, Falcon, and Vision were among the guests. To be fair, that's a great lineup, but it's missing one Avenger, and if Joss Whedon had his way, Captain Marvel would have joined the rest of the Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

14. Elizabeth Olsen Wasn't Joss Whedon's First Choice For Wanda Maximoff

Source: Marvel Studio

If there's one thing that most fans agree on, it's that Elizabeth Olsen was cast wonderfully as Wanda Maximoff. Her debut appearance in the role was in Age of Ultron, and she's since reinforced her spot in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with WandaVision and Doctor Strange: The Multiverse of Madness. As it turns out, Olsen wasn't Joss Whedon's initial pick for the part, and he had another actress in mind: Saoirse Ronan.

15. Age of Ultron' Is 'The Modern Prometheus'

Source: Marvel Studio

None of the influences on the making of Age of Ultron are more obvious than Mary Shelley's most renowned novel, Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus. All you have to do is watch the movie to see it, but who the villain is (hint: it's not Ultron) isn't immediately obvious to all viewers. The ultimate villain of the story, just like in the book, isn't the monster; it's the man who created it in the first place.