Seven years after its original release, Avengers: Endgame is back on top of the box office. The Encore rerelease earned $26 million domestically over the weekend of September 25 and $86 million worldwide, ahead of Resident Evil. It also includes new scenes designed to set up Avengers: Doomsday.
The Numbers
Endgame Encore debuted at No. 1 with $26 million in North America, according to weekend reports. That is the third-biggest opening for a theatrical rerelease in box office history. The record still belongs to the original Star Wars rerelease at $35.9 million, and The Lion King 3D’s $30.1 million also stayed ahead.
Here is the rest of the top five for the weekend:
- Resident Evil: $23.3 million, crossing $100 million domestically
- Heart of the Beast: $20 million
- Primetime: $19.2 million
- Forgotten Island: $12.8 million
What Is New in the Encore Cut
Marvel added new scenes meant to tie the film to Avengers: Doomsday, which arrives in theaters on December 18. Reception to the additions has been described as generally lukewarm. The most talked-about change alters Steve Rogers’ ending to show how his actions break the multiverse when he travels back in time.
Why It Matters
The original Endgame earned about $2.79 billion worldwide, and it has been available on streaming for years. Even so, fans showed up to see it again on the big screen. For Marvel, the rerelease works as a reminder of how the Infinity Saga ended, three months before the next Avengers film lands.
Endgame Encore proves the appetite for event-scale Marvel films is still there, even for a movie most viewers have already seen. The next test is Avengers: Doomsday on December 18, so expect more marketing pushes between now and then.
What do you think – did the new scenes improve Endgame or muddy it? Come talk about it in the NerdBlocks forum.
