Tony Stark may be the creator of Ultron in the upcoming "Avengers" sequel.

At Comic-Con International 2013, one of the most exciting announcements was undoubtedly "The Avengers: Age of Ultron," Joss Whedon's follow-up to the massively successful "The Avengers." While comic book fans familiar with the deadly A.I. know his creator as Hank Pym, the first Ant-Man, comments from Whedon and Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige strongly indicate another character might fill that role: Tony Stark.

"Hank Pym will play a very big role in his own movie, which is released after 'The Avengers 2,'" Feige told Empire Online in a post-panel interview. "When you see and talk to other people about the footage that we did, what they'll tell you is that it was an Iron Man helmet that was slowly, meticulously being bashed and ripped and sparked and torn apart into an Ultron face."

Indeed, when Whedon spoke with io9 after the panel, he also seemed to imply that Hank Pym wasn't really essential to bring Ultron in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"We don't have to have him. It works very simply -- this is Marvel cinema, not Marvel comics," Whedon told io9. "One thing [Marvel Studios head] Kevin Feige has a genius for is knowing what to hold onto and what to let go of. You can invoke the feeling you had and play with the characters you love and remain true to the needs of the film. You'll have to wait and and see, but you don't need a Pym to create an Ultron."

"Avengers: Age of Ultron" hits theaters May 1, 2015.