Avengers: Age of Ultron interviews

This is it. This is officially the start of blockbuster season. It’s that time of year when Hollywood starts to roll out its big guns in anticipation of packed seats in cinemas, not to mention shifting more merchandise than a third-world country can struggle to keep up with.

While each year has a couple of big hitters to keep us occupied during the summer months, 2015 seems to be positively swimming in them: Jurassic World, Terminator Genisys, James Bond Spectre, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens are all on the horizon.

But first up we have Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, a sequel to the first Avengers movie released in 2012. A film that that grossed over 1billion dollars worldwide, I let you know (cue Dr Evil cackle).

We caught up with the cast of the superhero epic in London recently, on the eve of the film’s European premiere. Present and correct were Robert Downey Jr, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson along with writer and director Joss Whedon.

Eyes down for highlights from the press conference…

Joss, Ultron is a great villain. Was it an easy decision to make Ultron the main villain or was it a long thinking process?

Joss Whedon: No I said that we should have Ultron in the second movie before I decided to make the first movie. He’s big, he’s powerful, he’s angry and he’s metal. He’s strong enough to take these guys on. He’s a little unhinged and I can write that.

Elizabeth and Scarlett, how empowering does it feel to play two female superheroes in a male-dominated universe?

Scarlett Johansson: What’s great about playing this character is that she’s based in something deep and something that I can hold onto. She’s grounded in something very real. She’s experienced a lot of trauma and she’s never really been able to make active choices for herself. I’m looking at it just from an actor from looking for material that’s substantial, not just a female actor looking for substantial work.

Elizabeth Olsen: I’m just so thrilled just to be part of this whole group and world. It’s a franchise that I’ve been watching since the first Iron Man. I think they make such great films that have such a balance of depth and humour and action, but they’re all humans that have weaknesses and strengths. In this film I think there’s a special highlight on everyone’s own personal worlds and lives and what makes them human. I think that’s what makes this film so great – it’s mindboggling.

Scarlett, your character could have been written off as the sexy member of the team…

Scarlett Johansson: Really? Have you seen Chris Hemsworth?!

How important is it for you to be smart as well as hot? Are you also upset there’s not a Black Widow film yet?

Scarlett Johansson:  I think one of the qualities in the Widow that I love and am interested in is that she’s put in the work. She’s now at a place where she’s able to do something for herself and maybe even have a relationship with somebody. Maybe open up in that way. Yeah a Black Widow movie, that would be cool. I’m always happy to put the catsuit back on and get in front of those mirrors!

Joss, the Avengers films are like Marvel’s Super Bowl. How much of a constraint is that to you as writer? And how far do you think the superhero genre still has to go?

Joss Whedon: If I had a key on my computer that said a billion dollars I would press it. I just try to write it as well as I can, I don’t really think about those things. The restrictions, as I said before are sometimes frustrating, sometimes very useful because the page is not so blank. The thing I loved about Marvel comics is the thing I love about what Kevin Feige is doing with the Marvel universe which is he approaches every movie as a completely new idea. As a movie of some particular genre that happens to have superheroes in it. He’s not interested in creating a formula, he’s interested in creating a universe. As long as somebody who really cares is at the head, trying to create new versions of the superhero movie and not fall into a pattern then it can sustain for quite a while.

You’re all known for character driven parts. Do you approach a part like this in an action movie differently to more dramatic roles?

Chris Evans: It may be a little different. In an action film there may not be as many tangible opportunities to play off of as an actor. Some action where the reality is a little more grounded given the environment you’re in or the characters you’re playing off of you may have something more to kind of pull from. In a movie like this you may be sitting on a green screen or talking to a tennis ball but I think everyone up here has a very healthy imagination and grew up running around in their backyard with a cape around their neck. So it’s a different muscle but I think it’s a very similar approach.

Jeremy, it’s been reported that you weren’t happy with the way Hawkeye was portrayed in the first film but the role has been expanded in this film. Are there any comic book story lines you’d like to adapt with that character?

Jeremy Renner: I don’t really read comics so I can’t answer that part of it. I let writer’s that know what they’re doing do that and I try to do what I’ve got to do. In this one I was so happy. I remember talking about the ideas of what are in this movie and they were able to implement them in this one so I’m very thankful for that.

Paul, you’ve been part of the Marvel universe since Iron Man. What’s it like being physically on screen and not just a voice?

Paul Bettany: It was lovely to finally be on set with a bunch of people that I’ve been supposedly working with for ten years but hadn’t really met so that was nice. It’s a double-edged sword. Initially my job was turning up at the end of the movie with the superhero power that if anything was unclear I could clarify just by. I couldn’t imagine that the contract could even be better than that. But it was a dream. Honestly everybody was so welcoming. They’re a bunch of really lovely actors. That’s a nice environment to work in.