Marvel’s newest box office win came from a movie that first opened in 2019.
Avengers Endgame: Encore returned to North American theaters over the Sept. 25–27 weekend and opened at No. 1 with an estimated $26 million from 3,060 theaters, according to weekend charts from Box Office Mojo and The Numbers. Disney said the rerelease added $60 million overseas for an estimated $86 million global weekend.
Marvel sold the rerelease as a bridge, not just a replay
The core movie is still Avengers: Endgame, the 2019 Infinity Saga finale directed by Anthony and Joe Russo. The new commercial hook was the attached material for Avengers: Doomsday, which Disney has dated for Dec. 18, 2026. Disney said Endgame: Encore included exclusive new footage that directly sets up Doomsday, plus an exclusive first look at the December film.
Marvel.com framed the additions carefully. Anthony Russo said the team was not trying to change Endgame itself; the added material was designed to add depth to the Avengers story while pointing toward Doomsday. Marvel also said IMAX and Infinity Vision screenings included an additional sneak peek.
The No. 1 finish came in a crowded field
The Associated Press reported that the rerelease topped a field that included the second weekend of Resident Evil and new wide releases such as A24’s Primetime, Paramount’s Heart of the Beast, and Universal/DreamWorks’ Forgotten Island. Box Office Mojo listed Resident Evil second with $23.3 million, followed by Heart of the Beast with $20 million and Primetime with about $19.2 million. The numbers are still estimates and final weekend figures may shift.
The Associated Press also reported that only two rereleases have opened higher in domestic cinemas: the 1997 return of Star Wars: A New Hope with $35.9 million and the 2011 rerelease of The Lion King with $30.2 million. Disney described Endgame: Encore as the estimated second-highest global debut of all time for a rerelease.
Premium formats helped turn nostalgia into an event
Disney said the film opened in more than 3,000 theaters, including more than 1,300 Infinity Vision screens. Those screens accounted for about 52% of the opening weekend figure, according to Disney.
Infinity Vision is Disney’s premium large-format certification program, built with theater partners around larger screens, laser projection and premium audio. The format gave Marvel a way to frame Endgame: Encore as more than a standard rerelease during a crowded late-September frame.
The wider signal is demand creation
The $26 million domestic opening is small compared with Endgame’s original 2019 scale, but that comparison misses the function of the rerelease. Endgame: Encore was being used to convert existing affection into current attention for the next Avengers film.
That is likely to interest other studios. A known streaming-era title became a theatrical product again because the package contained scarce new material, premium presentation and a link to an upcoming release. For Disney, the result produced box office revenue, fan conversation and a measurable signal ahead of Doomsday marketing.
The approach also avoids relying on a trailer alone. Instead of dropping new footage only online, Marvel attached it to a communal screening of the MCU’s biggest finale. The weekend’s result suggests that, at least for core Marvel fans, that theater-first pitch still has value.
Endgame is still chasing Avatar, but Doomsday is the real target
Disney said Avengers: Endgame now stands at about $2.885 billion worldwide, keeping it at No. 2 all-time and roughly $39 million behind Avatar. That lifetime race gives the rerelease a secondary storyline if the run extends beyond opening weekend.
The more immediate target is December. Avengers: Doomsday brings the Russo brothers back to the Avengers franchise and places Robert Downey Jr. in the role of Victor von Doom/Doctor Doom rather than Tony Stark/Iron Man, according to Disney.
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