Thanos, The Joker and the 25 greatest superhero movie villains of all-time

25. Ultron

There’s something so unnerving about the idea of technology becoming so self-aware that it ultimately replaces humans as the dominant species on the planet. We’ve seen it done on film so many times before – heck, it’s even the basis for the entire Terminator franchise. Thus, it’s hardly surprising that it eventually became a running theme in a world as technologically advanced as the MCU.

However, what stops Ultron’s origins from becoming too derivative of what we’ve seen before is the unusual case of empathy we feel for the cyborg – and how that, like his own behavior, turns to judgment, and eventually fury, when he begins his mission to essentially take control of the planet regardless of the cost.

Avengers: Age Of Ultron is far from a perfect film, and constantly finds itself listed among the more underwhelming MCU entries, but it is thematically thrilling and dabbles with more than a few thought-provoking notions, highlighting Tony Stark’s shortcomings with his reliance on technology and how that paved the way for a force-to-be-reckoned with like Ultron to emerge.

Granted, the film couldn’t exactly capitalize on all of the ideas it put forward, but Ultron stood out as a surprisingly compelling villain and elevated the film’s story. His lack of regard for humanity was unnerving due to his alarmingly positive outlook – and that made him a great villain.