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Not all heroes wear capes. Nor do all of them have arms and legs or even a physical form altogether.
To be a hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, all it takes is a willingness to make a sacrifice for others, which is precisely what happened in the second episode of VisionQuest, when the show killed off what is effectively the longest-running hero in the MCU.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for VisionQuest episode 2.
After Vision (Paul Bettany) was shot with adamantium bullets in episode 2, he no longer has enough power to house all seven AI entities living within his programming. In addition to Vision himself, they include J.A.R.V.I.S. (James D’Arcy), F.R.I.D.A.Y. (Orla Brady), E.D.I.T.H. (Emily Hampshire), U (Jonathan Sayer), D.U.M.-E (Henry Lewis), and Ultron (James Spader). And while Ultron should have been deleted years ago, J.A.R.V.I.S. steps up and deletes himself, saving all of the others. It was a heartfelt moment in the series, especially since J.A.R.V.I.S. had become something of a brother to Vision, but it was also a fitting end to a character with a lot of history.
In Marvel Comics, J.A.R.V.I.S. wasn’t an AI at all. As much of Iron Man’s persona was informed by Batman, Jarvis was simply Tony Stark’s version of Alfred, a trusted, old-fashioned English butler who helped Iron Man from afar and fetched Tony Stark drinks whenever Tony had fallen off the wagon.
When Iron Man was adapted for the big screen, director Jon Favreau saw little reason for Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) to have a butler. What Tony did need, however, was someone to talk to while he was in the suit who can help monitor its various systems. Thus, Iron Man got an AI named after the butler from the comics, with the acronym that means “Just A Rather Very Intelligent System,” (which was clearly forced backronym). While this meant that Iron Man’s already-established AI programs from the comics, F.R.I.D.A.Y. and H.O.M.E.R., were passed over, most fans seemed to be happy with the nod to Jarvis.
Back when Paul Bettany was cast as J.A.R.V.I.S., there was no plan for him to eventually turn him into an Avenger himself. According to Bettany in an interview with ScreenRant, Favreau had called him up and jokingly said he needed someone with “no personality” to play a robot. Bettany agreed, but it just so happened that they’d picked a guy who was suited to becoming a superhero himself, especially for the role of Vision, which Bettany and J.A.R.V.I.S. very naturally evolved into.
In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Iron Man creates Ultron, who then attacks J.A.R.V.I.S., perceiving him as a threat. The damaged J.A.R.V.I.S., however, manages to survive the attack. A synthezoid body made of vibranium and synthetic living tissue was Ultron’s intended final form. Instead, Stark and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) install J.A.R.V.I.S. and the Mind Stone into the body. With a jolt of lighting from Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Vision is born.
It seemed as though J.A.R.V.I.S. fully became Vision, especially since Iron Man found the need to replace the AI in his suits with F.R.I.D.A.Y., but VisionQuest reveals that J.A.R.V.I.S., or some version of him, still exists within Vision. Instead of J.A.R.V.I.S. being played by Bettany, however, he’s portrayed by James D’Arcy. There’s a very good reason for that.
While the butler version of Jarvis wasn’t needed for 2008’s Iron Man, he did, eventually, make his way into the MCU. In the ABC series Agent Carter, Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) works as an agent with the Strategic Scientific Reserve. Tony Stark’s father, Howard Stark , is a recurring character in that show with Dominic Cooper reprising his role from Captain America: The First Avenger. Fortunately, this gave Jarvis a second chance as Howard’s butler, Jarvis (D’Arcy), with the implied logic that J.A.R.V.I.S. was named for Jarvis, who’d been a beloved family butler when Tony was young.
Jarvis became an integral part of Agent Carter, even more so than Howard Stark. He aided Peggy on a variety of assignments. Between the dry wit the writers gave him and D’Arcy’s charming performance, the character became a fan-favorite. He was so beloved that the character even made it into Avengers: Endgame in the scene where Iron Man and Captain America (Chris Evans) venture back to Fort Lehigh in 1970. While it was little more than a cameo, fans of Agent Carter cheered the inclusion, as there’d been some debate (which still exists today) as to whether or not Agent Carter was MCU canon.
D’Arcy never played J.A.R.V.I.S., but VisionQuest confirmed what had only been implied before, that AIs in the MCU are often modeled after real people. So, with Bettany playing Vision, it was fitting for D’Arcy to fill in. The show also established the idea that the AIs aiding the Avengers are heroes themselves, particularly with the character of F.R.I.D.A.Y., and if that’s true for her, it’s certainly true for J.A.R.V.I.S. as well.
Sadly, this may be the last time we see either version of Jarvis/J.A.R.V.I.S.. While J.A.R.V.I.S. was absorbed into Vision in Age of Ultron, his reappearance in Vision’s mind was a welcome surprise, and his death was a fitting tribute. And as for the human version of the character, we’ve never found out what happened to him after that scene in Endgame, though we can safely assume that he died sometime before the events of Iron Man. There’s very little reason to bring him back again, especially after the MCU is remade with Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
That’s probably a good thing since both versions of the character have enjoyed an impressive character arc. Marvel Studios kinda-sorta merging them together in VisionQuest was a nice way to send off both characters. While I know nobody ever really dies in comic books (or comic book movies), it’s probably time to let go of the butler and the program that bore his name.
