| VisionQuest | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Created by | Terry Matalas |
| Based on | Marvel Comics |
| Showrunner | Terry Matalas |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Mick Giacchino |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 4 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producer | Roopesh Parekh |
| Production location | London |
| Cinematography |
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| Editors |
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| Running time | 48–56 minutes |
| Production company | Marvel Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | Disney+ |
| Release | October 13, 2026 – present |
| Related | |
VisionQuest is an American television miniseries created by Terry Matalas for the streaming service Disney+, based on Marvel Comics featuring the character Vision. A spin-off from the miniseries WandaVision (2021), it is the 18th television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) from Marvel Studios and is produced under its Marvel Television label. The series shares continuity with the films of the MCU. It follows the synthezoid Vision as he attempts to understand who he is by communicating with AI personas embedded in his programming, and goes on the run with a mysterious teenager who may be his reincarnated son. Matalas serves as showrunner and a director.
Paul Bettany reprises his role as Vision from previous MCU media, starring alongside James Spader, Ruaridh Mollica, Todd Stashwick, Lauren Morais, Orla Brady, Diane Morgan, Polly Frame, Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, Emily Hampshire, James D'Arcy, Ben Crompton, T'Nia Miller, Art Malik, and Mary McDonnell. Development of a Vision series began by October 2022, with WandaVision's Jac Schaeffer as head writer. She was no longer involved by May 2024, when Matalas was redeveloping the series and Bettany was confirmed to be starring. It was described as the final installment in a trilogy that began with WandaVision and continued with Agatha All Along (2024). Filming began by March 2025 and wrapped in July, taking place at Pinewood Studios in London with Christopher J. Byrne, Gandja Monteiro, Vincenzo Natali, and Matalas directing episodes. Casting for the AI personas included some returning MCU characters and actors.
VisionQuest premiered on Disney+ on October 13, 2026, with its first two episodes, and will consist of eight episodes, concluding on November 10. It is part of Phase Six of the MCU.
After being resurrected in WandaVision (2021), the synthezoid Vision lives in hiding while he attempts to understand who he is by communicating with various AI personas that are embedded in his programming. When a bounty is placed on Vision's head, he goes on the run with a mysterious teenager who may be his reincarnated son.
Additionally, actors reprising their MCU roles include Joe Locke as Billy Maximoff, Wanda and Vision's sorcerer son and Tommy's younger twin brother whose soul inhabited William Kaplan's body after his death in Agatha All Along; and Faran Tahir as Raza, the leader of the Ten Rings faction that kidnapped Stark in the film Iron Man (2008). Raza was seemingly killed by Obadiah Stane in that film. Also appearing is Cristian Lavin as a mercenary. Matalas makes a cameo appearance as an interviewer for the channel FXN News. The character J.I.M. / Synthetic Man—the world's first synthezoid, created by Dr. Phineas Horton—will appear in the series.
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "No Strings" | Christopher J. Byrne | Terry Matalas | October 13, 2026 | |
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Vision lives and works in a traditional Scottish pub in Edinburgh owned by Fiona Guthrie, which he and Wanda Maximoff used to frequent. Inside his Mindspace, he resides with AIs J.A.R.V.I.S., F.R.I.D.A.Y., D.U.M.-E., U., and E.D.I.T.H., who help him improve his social interaction, while keeping Ultron captive. Vision relives his previous iteration's memories to understand his feelings but refuses to view those of the Vision created by Wanda in Westview, believing they were unreal. Ultron criticizes his denial, while Vision questions Ultron's renewed understanding of humanity. Mercenaries led by bounty hunter Paladin, hired by an unknown client, attack the pub to capture Vision, killing Fiona in the crossfire and forcing him to flee. The AIs discover Ultron betrayed them by informing Paladin through the dark web after finding a bounty on Vision. Paladin captures Thomas Shepherd, a grifter working with pickpocket Lisa Molinari, who claims to be Vision's son Tommy Maximoff. Paladin hacks Vision's mind to alert the AIs to Tommy's existence and capture. | |||||
| 2 | "Theseus" | Christopher J. Byrne | Terry Matalas | October 13, 2026 | |
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A year earlier, Tommy suffers a psychotic break and seemingly regains memories of being Vision and Wanda's son after nearly drowning. On a bus to Saint Mabyn's Psychiatric Sanitarium, he meets Lisa, who has stolen the guard Clancy's keys, and manifests super-speed and energy redirection, allowing them to escape. In the present, the AIs discover that Paladin is an identity used by generations of bounty hunters. Vision finds Tommy at Saint Mabyn's, where mercenaries have killed the staff. Paladin blackmails Vision into surrendering by threatening Tommy, but Vision warns him that he is different from his predecessor before escaping. Struggling with his former self's legacy, Vision decides to rescue Tommy despite J.A.R.V.I.S.'s warnings. He becomes trapped in an EMP cage, but escapes with Tommy. Paladin mortally wounds Vision with adamantium rounds, prompting Vision to urge Tommy to flee. J.A.R.V.I.S. sacrifices himself by deleting his own program to reroute power and save Vision and the other AIs. Tommy then rescues Vision and they escape by car. | |||||
| 3 | "Reboot" | Gandja Monteiro | Cindy Appel | October 20, 2026 | |
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Ultron observes the Butcherbird Killer, an android serial killer who etches wings near their victims. As Vision treats his wounds with sulfuric acid, he struggles to bond with Tommy, who is traumatized by water and his own powers. Tommy reveals that after being revived from drowning, his super-speed and phasing boiled the pool water, frightening the other children. Ultron criticizes Vision's blunt approach to telling the truth, which alienates Tommy. Meanwhile, Paladin encounters the Butcherbird Killer, who exposes him as an impostor; Paladin escapes using his drones, but his client terminates their contract. As Vision's processors continue failing, he asks Tommy to shut him down and reboot him using the pool as a coolant. Vision reassures Tommy that he is real, and Tommy uses his super-speed to revive Vision, alerting the Butcherbird Killer. Following J.A.R.V.I.S.'s funeral, the AIs discover that the reboot connected Vision to the Butcherbird Killer, who begins invading his Mindspace. | |||||
| 4 | "Malware" | Gandja Monteiro | Michael Taylor | October 20, 2026 | |
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The Butcherbird Killer possesses Vision and threatens to harm Tommy if he interferes, but E.D.I.T.H. manages to expel her. Vision, Tommy, and the AIs investigate the killer and discover that her victims were board members of Markridge Biotech, whose founders developed the first stable synthetic consciousness. The Butcherbird Killer has collected biomarkers from her victims, leaving Katerina Wells as the only surviving founder. With Lisa's help, Vision and Tommy infiltrate a gala hosted by Wells, where Vision tells Tommy about J.I.M., an unstable synthetic man whose emotions caused him to combust. Tommy realizes Vision has kept Ultron's existence secret. The Butcherbird Killer attacks the gala and reveals herself as Jocasta, a synthezoid based on Markridge co-founder Dr. Josephine "Jo" Carrington. Unable to defeat her, Vision allows Ultron to take control. Ultron kills Wells, preventing Jocasta from obtaining the final biomarker, then betrays Vision, locks him and the other AIs out of their systems, and leaves with Tommy. | |||||
| 5 | "Firewall" | Vincenzo Natali | Christopher Monfette | October 27, 2026 | |
| 6 | "Deadlock" | Vincenzo Natali | Nicole Falsetti | October 27, 2026 | |
| 7 | "Immolation" | Terry Matalas | Matthew Okumura | November 3, 2026 | |
| 8 | "Forever" | Terry Matalas | Terry Matalas | November 10, 2026 | |
In March 2009, Marvel Studios hired writers to help come up with creative ways to launch its lesser-known properties, including the Marvel Comics character Vision. Paul Bettany was cast as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) incarnation of Vision for the film Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015). This version of the character is a synthezoid who is partially created from J.A.R.V.I.S., an AI assistant voiced by Bettany in earlier MCU films. Following Vision's death in the film Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Bettany was revealed to be portraying a reassembled and reactivated version of the character in the Disney+ series WandaVision (2021). This version was referred to as "White Vision" or simply "The Vision", and has an all-white appearance, similar to when the comic book character was resurrected with an all-white body and no memories or emotions.
Jac Schaeffer, the head writer of WandaVision, signed a three-year overall television deal with Marvel Studios in May 2021 to develop additional Disney+ projects. By October 2022, they were developing a series called Vision Quest, which would center on Bettany's "White Vision". Schaeffer began discussing Vision Quest during the development of another WandaVision spin-off series, Agatha All Along (2024), and she was set as head writer while working on that series. Development of a Vision-centric series was rumored as early as March 2021. The name "Vision Quest" was previously used for a comic book storyline in West Coast Avengers vol. 2 #42–45 (1988–1989); it was unclear if the series would be a direct adaptation of that comic. A writers' room was set to be formed in early November 2022, to include Peter Cameron, Megan McDonnell, and Eileen Shim. Cameron and McDonnell worked on WandaVision and Agatha All Along. Vision Quest was expected to follow "White Vision" as he attempts to regain his memories and humanity, with potential for Elizabeth Olsen to reprise her MCU role as Vision's wife Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch.

By October 2023, Marvel Studios shifted its creative philosophy to a more traditional television development process, moving away from head writers and beginning to hire dedicated showrunners for its series. By May 2024, Schaeffer was no longer developing Vision Quest due to her focus on making Agatha All Along, as well as for "personal reasons" according to Bettany, with Terry Matalas joining to redevelop the series and serve as its showrunner. Marvel Studios hired Matalas after being impressed with his work on the third season of Star Trek: Picard (2023), with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige being a particular fan of the Star Trek franchise. Matalas was also set to direct for the series, alongside Christopher J. Byrne, Vincenzo Natali, and Agatha All Along episodic director Gandja Monteiro.
Matalas met with Schaeffer upon joining the project, and Marvel Studios executive Brad Winderbaum said it would be a "love letter" to the work Schaeffer had done, while being unique to Matalas. The series was still being referred to by Marvel as Vision Quest, but The Hollywood Reporter said this was not its official title. Disney was referring to the series as simply Vision by May 2025, before the title was officially announced as VisionQuest that October. The series has been described as the final installment of the trilogy that began with WandaVision and continued with Agatha All Along. Describing the relationship to those other two series, Matalas said VisionQuest was more of a sequel to WandaVision, while touching on some elements from Agatha All Along. Marvel Studios's Mary Livanos, who worked on those two series, returned as an executive producer for VisionQuest, alongside Bettany, Schaeffer, and Byrne, while Roopesh Parekh was a producer. The series is being released under Marvel Studios' "Marvel Television" label.
A writers' room opened during the week of May 20, 2024, featuring Cindy Appel, Michael Taylor, Christopher Monfette, Nicole Falsetti, and Matthew Okumura, alongside Matalas. Matalas described VisionQuest as an adventure and mystery drama, while also having elements of surreal comedy. The basis of the series was inspired by two scenes: the final conversation between Vision and his creator, the villainous AI Ultron, in Age of Ultron; and the "Ship of Theseus" discussion between the two versions of Vision in WandaVision. Matalas stated that the former scene was the "launching point" for VisionQuest, while Bettany described the series as a "mash-up of the Pinocchio and Frankenstein stories".
VisionQuest is set around 2028, 18 months after Agatha All Along and years after the events of WandaVision, at the end of which Vision's memories were restored. It focuses on the character's struggle to reconnect with those memories because he has no emotional attachment to them, which leads him to go through an identity crisis; Emily Hampshire stated that the "whole show is really about identity". As part of his attempts to understand who he is, Vision interacts with the human population disguised as one of them during the day, while at night he retreats into the quantum processors of his own mind, where he has created the Mindspace—a gigantic mansion filled with environments he can alter at will. There, he communicates with various AI personas he rescued from the Avengers Compound and which are embedded in his programming; Vision urges all these AIs to assume human avatars, just as he does, and they possess distinct characteristics that help him understand different human qualities and abilities. Bettany said the AI personas are inside the Mindspace because Vision had "been saving and copying and pasting them to keep them alive", including Ultron, whom Bettany stated "has to be kept behind a pretty impressive firewall because he's a psychopath". Ultron returns in VisionQuest following his apparent death in Age of Ultron because the creative team wanted to include a character who was "really strong for Vision to play off of", and since they did not have access to Wanda, Ultron was chosen instead. Bettany said that the series' story revolves largely around the relationship between Vision and Ultron, a complex dynamic he was eager to explore. Despite Wanda not appearing in the series, Matalas confirmed that Vision is aware of her death in the MCU film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022).
The series continues the WandaVision trilogy theme of exploring parenthood, specifically fatherhood. Winderbaum said VisionQuest was about three generations—a grandfather (Ultron), father (Vision), and son (Tommy Maximoff)—and would explore if a man who had an abusive father could be a good father himself. Bettany said VisionQuest explores intergenerational trauma with fathers and sons, similar to how WandaVision explores grief, as well as "denial of pain, and denial of your own truth, and coming to terms with who and what you are". Matalas said each episode feels like a different kind of film, similar to how each episode of WandaVision pays homage to a different era of American sitcoms. Winderbaum said Matalas "knows the lore" of the MCU and the series would be rewarding for fans who had followed the franchise for years. Matalas described one scene in the finale as "a Marvel dream".
Bettany was confirmed to be reprising his MCU role of Vision with the news of the series' redevelopment in May 2024. In August, James Spader was set to reprise his role as Ultron from Age of Ultron. The character also appears as a human in the series because Matalas did not want him to look like a "CGI robot 24/7" incapable of expressing emotions or doing the things Spader can do with "just the twitch of an eyebrow". Todd Stashwick, who worked with Matalas on the television series 12 Monkeys (2015–2018) and Picard, joined the cast a month later. In January 2025, Faran Tahir was revealed to be reprising his role as Raza from the first MCU film, Iron Man (2008). Following a five-month audition process, Ruaridh Mollica joined the cast in February as a character referred to as "Tucker", and T'Nia Miller was cast in the leading role of Josephine "Jo" Carrington / Jocasta in May. Soon after, Hampshire was revealed to be portraying the key role of E.D.I.T.H., an AI introduced in the MCU film Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) where she was voiced by assistant editor Dawn Michelle King. Matalas wrote the role with Hampshire in mind, as they had previously worked together on 12 Monkeys.
Matalas revealed in August 2025 that Stashwick was playing the comic character Paladin, and that Picard star Orla Brady was portraying the AI F.R.I.D.A.Y., replacing Kerry Condon who voiced the character in several MCU projects. Mary McDonnell was revealed as part of the cast the next month, playing Katerina Wells. In October, several more cast members were revealed: Henry Lewis and Jonathan Sayer as D.U.M.-E. and U., respectively, two robots seen in the MCU films; and James D'Arcy as J.A.R.V.I.S., the AI originally voiced by Bettany in the MCU films. D'Arcy portrayed Edwin Jarvis, the human inspiration for the AI J.A.R.V.I.S., in several MCU projects. Matalas hired Lewis and Sayer after seeing them perform in the play Peter Pan Goes Wrong.: 6 That same month, Mollica was revealed to be portraying Tommy Maximoff and Thomas Shepherd, taking over from Jett Klyne who portrayed Tommy in WandaVision and the MCU film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022). Mollica previously auditioned for the MCU role of Billy Maximoff, Tommy's twin brother. In November, Lauren Morais and Diane Morgan were respectively revealed to be portraying Lisa Molinari and the Handler, the latter an associate of Paladin.: 6 In October 2026, Mollica announced that Joe Locke would reprise his MCU role of Billy Maximoff from Agatha All Along in the series. Additional castings include Polly Frame as Fiona Guthrie,: 6 and Cristian Lavin as a mercenary.
Will Hughes-Jones served as the production designer for VisionQuest, with Sarah Young as the costume designer after she was an assistant costume designer on Age of Ultron. Hair, makeup and prosthetics designer Frances "Fran" Hounsom also worked on the series. Despite VisionQuest not using generative AI, Hughes-Jones deliberately emulated the flawed aesthetic of AI software renderings in the design of the Mindspace—including stair banisters that lead nowhere, chairs built into walls, and wonky furniture. Over 40 custom "Vision"-branded props were created for the Mindspace kitchen, including Vision's Mustard, Firewall Hot Sauce, Mindstone Soup,: 7 Infinidairy, and Vibranium Foil. Matalas stated that the environments in the Mindspace resemble screensavers with "vibrant, bright, almost Mario Bros.-like colors".: 7
Young's team had to recreate the White Vision suit for VisionQuest because only two original examples from WandaVision remained, and they had deteriorated during storage. Vision's pinstriped suit features a robotic code incorporated into the garment's stitching, which was written by Matalas alongside Young. Similarly, Vision's costume reflects the silhouette of his robotic form, including a jumper with the Mind Stone in its center. Tommy's costumes were designed based on the color palette of his counterpart from the comics, Speed. E.D.I.T.H. possessed an extensive wardrobe consisting of 21 distinct outfits—more than any other character in the series—including those of a boxer, bullfighter, priest, race car driver, field medic,: 8 and spy; a consistent color palette of red, blue, and yellow was developed to maintain continuity despite the frequent costume changes. Costume references for E.D.I.T.H. included Amelia Earhart, female World War II pilots, Formula One branding, and vintage aviation, all reinterpreted through the Mindspace aesthetic.: 8 Paladin's clothing is deliberately less conspicuous than in the comics, allowing the character to blend into the crowd. His wardrobe includes both tactical and street versions of his jacket.

Principal photography began by March 14, 2025, at Pinewood Studios in London, under the working title Tin Man, with Byrne, Monteiro, Natali, and Matalas directing. Christopher Ross, Neville Kidd, and Ben Smithard were the cinematographers.: 1 Location shooting took place in and around London,[independent source needed] as well as at various sites across the United Kingdom, including Hatfield House, which served as the setting for Horton Manor, and White Waltham Airfield, used for scenes set in Paladin's jet hangar.: 6–7 Two practical sets were extensively used in the production of VisionQuest: the first was a build spanning two streets, representing the crime-ridden city of Madripoor, which included the Princess Bar; and the second was the Mindspace mansion. The latter set took 14 weeks to build, and featured seven fully functional rooms—including a kitchen, living room, dining room, entrance hall, corridor, boiler room, and cinema—each designed to connect physically, allowing for continuous camera movement.: 6–8 Filming wrapped in late July 2025, and was completed in August,[independent source needed] when Matalas indicated that production spanned seven months.
Drew Nichols, Amelia Allwarden, Jamie Gross, Christopher Gay, and McKenna Cook served as editors for the series.: 1 John Haley served as visual effects supervisor, while Jonathan Barrass was the special effects supervisor. There were over 280 practical effects in the series, including magnetic rigging for Vision's flight scenes and interactive LED reflections for the Mindspace walls.: 8
Mick Giacchino, the son of frequent MCU composer Michael Giacchino, was revealed to be composing the series' score in March 2026.
Footage from the series was included in a sizzle reel that was shown at Disney's upfront presentation in May 2025. Bettany and Winderbaum promoted the series during a Marvel Animation and Marvel Television panel at New York Comic Con 2025, where footage was shown. Mekishana Pierre and Nick Romano at Entertainment Weekly noted the "trippy setting" of a mansion in Vision's mind where he sees personifications of other AIs from the MCU, comparing this to the "reality-warping vibes" of WandaVision and Agatha All Along. The appearance of Spader as Ultron in both robot and human forms was also noted by commentators. Bettany and Matalas promoted the series during the 53rd Saturn Awards ceremony in March 2026, and Bettany appeared at Disney's May upfront presentation to announce the premiere date and show more footage.
At Disney's D23 convention in August 2026, a VisionQuest booth displayed a screen framed like a painting which showed a mysterious figure engulfed in flames. The image would glitch to show glimpses of Ultron. Commentators believed the fiery figure could be the character Jim Hammond / Human Torch, an android whose body was used to create Vision in the comics. Also at the convention, Feige, Bettany, and Spader promoted the series during a panel and debuted the first trailer before it was released online. The trailer, which featured the song "Losing My Mind", was described as "trippy" by Kirsten Chuba and Aaron Couch at The Hollywood Reporter, "mind-bending" by James Hibbs for Radio Times, and "as weird, if not weirder, than WandaVision" by Michael McWhertor of Polygon.
A second trailer was released on October 1, 2026. Michael Walsh of Nerdist praised the trailer, calling it an "absolute banger" that presented VisionQuest as "surreal, mysterious, heartfelt, and funny", while also bringing "real stakes" for both the series' characters and the MCU as a whole. Bettany promoted the series at San Diego Comic-Con Málaga 2026 on October 3, where the first 22 minutes of the premiere episode were screened. Bettany further promoted VisionQuest alongside Spader, Mollica, Hampshire, and Matalas at New York Comic Con 2026 that same month, where the series' first episode was screened. Also part of that convention was an immersive pop-up exhibition titled "Controlled, Altered, Deleted: The VisionQuest Collection", which was on display at Studio 525 in New York on October 9 and 10. The exhibition featured parodies of famous paintings, such as Grant Wood's American Gothic (1930) and Edward Hopper's Nighthawks (1942), among others. An episode of VisionQuest will be screened at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival's third annual TV Sidebar on October 26—an event where Bettany will receive the Virtuoso Award.
VisionQuest had its first two episodes screened at the 2026 BFI London Film Festival on October 12, ahead of their premiere on Disney+ on October 13; the series was originally scheduled to premiere on October 14. The remaining six episodes will be released weekly in two-episode blocks, followed by the final two episodes releasing individually on November 3 and 10, respectively. It is a part of Phase Six of the MCU.
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 79 critics gave the season a positive review, and the average of rated reviews was 7.35 out of 10. The critics' consensus reads, "Picking up where WandaVision left off, this series investigates the humanity beneath the robot, where the artificial becomes reality with heart, deliberate emotion, and a clear-eyed VisionQuest." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 64 out of 100 based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
In September 2026, Matalas said he had ideas for how the story of VisionQuest could continue in future seasons, while Bettany said the series was introducing a "new type" of Vision and would be a "springboard" for the character's future MCU appearances.