Avengers: Age of Ultron extended trailer released in wake of Marvel announcement

'There are no strings on me' growls James Spader as the villainous Ultron

Chris Hemsworth stars as Thor in Avengers: Age of Ultron (Marvel)

Even Avengers need a little downtime and in the extended trailer for Age of Ultron, that's exactly what they are daring to enjoy – before all hell breaks loose, of course.

Shown during a new episode of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D after the studio's huge 'phase three' announcement on Tuesday, the clip re-introduces the kickass gang of superheroes relaxing together and playing a game of "lift Thor's hammer".

"You're all not worthy," Chris Hemsworth's character tells Iron Man and the other competitors before villain Ultron rocks up and ruins the fun.

"How could you be worthy? You're puppets, tangled in strings," James Spader's menacing voice growls.

Cue a montage of high-powered action, crashing cars, awesome battle moves and Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow racing to save the world on a motorbike.

The trailer closes with an ominous shot of Captain America's broken shield before Ultron scarily affirms, "There are no strings on me".

Last week's leaked trailer revealed much of the footage in advance but, nevertheless, it is sure to hype up excitement ahead of its release on 1 May 2015.

"When Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and it is up to The Avengers to stop the villainous Ultron from enacting his terrible plans," reads the IMDB synopsis.

Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner also star in the sequel, along with newcomers Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

Marvel announced that a third Avengers film, Infinity War, will be heading to cinema screens for May 2018, along with a slate of other movies.

The studio has promised its first superhero films led by female and black actors – Captain Marvel and Black Panther, while Benedict Cumberbatch is reportedly first choice to play the Sorcerer Supreme in Doctor Strange.