Paul Bettany was ready to say goodbye to Marvel after Avengers: Infinity War, but Kevin Feige had other plans. The actor revealed how a meeting he dreaded turned into an unexpected new chapter for Vision.

Paul Bettany thought Vision’s death meant his Marvel run was over

Paul Bettany believed Marvel had let him go after his character Vision died in Avengers: Infinity War. The actor revealed this during an exclusive interview with PEOPLE at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event 2026 on Aug. 14. Bettany has portrayed Vision and voiced J.A.R.V.I.S. in the MCU since 2008’s Iron Man.

The British actor recalled walking into a meeting with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige in London. He assumed the studio was ending his tenure after Infinity War. “I walked in and I was very British about the whole thing. I just wanted everybody to feel uncomfortable,” Bettany shared in the Entertainment Weekly/PEOPLE interview suite.

Bettany then told the Marvel executives he harbored no ill will toward them. “I looked at them and said, ‘I’ve had a great run. I don’t want there to be any hard feelings. It’s been wonderful, thank you. And you’re so great,'” he continued. Marvel quickly corrected his assumption about being fired.

“They went, ‘Wait, are you quitting?’ And I went, ‘No, you’re not firing me?’ And they said, ‘No, we’re going to pitch you a TV show.’ I thought I had been fired,” Bettany recalled. That pitch eventually became the hit 2021 miniseries WandaVision alongside Elizabeth Olsen.

Bettany will now lead VisionQuest, which premieres Oct. 14 on Disney+. The show concludes the trilogy that began with WandaVision and continued with Agatha All Along. Terry Matalas created the series, and James Spader reprises his role as Ultron from Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Vision finds himself on the run with Thomas Shepard, a mysterious boy who may be his reincarnated son. Bettany called the project “a fantastic opportunity” and praised Matalas as “so thoughtful and creative, and a fan.” Spader also expressed enthusiasm, saying the experience was “a tremendous pleasure from the very beginning, right to the very end.”

Originally reported by Vritti Johar on SuperHeroHype.