Marvel has one more shot at overtaking Avatar at the box office with Avengers: Endgame.
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige on Wednesday told ComicBook.com and Screen Rant that new footage is being added to Avengers: Endgame in theaters next weekend, which will be accompanied by a "bit of a marketing push." This won't exactly be an "extended cut" but instead a version of the film "with a few new things at the end," he explained.
"If you stay and watch the movie, after the credits, there'll be a deleted scene, a little tribute, and a few surprises," Feige told Screen Rant.
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Feige didn't provide any more information about the new footage. The directors of Avengers: Endgame, Joe and Anthony Russo, previously noted that they didn't cut much out of the three-hour film, estimating in an interview with Collider that about five minutes of deleted scenes would be included on the blu-ray.
This new theatrical experience seems to be a clear effort to push Avengers: Endgame past Avatar's record of highest-grossing film of all time. Endgame is currently just over $40 million short of Avatar's crown, but as it began slowing down at the box office following a record-breaking opening, most box office analysts agreed the Marvel film was now unlikely to topple James Cameron's sci-fi epic.
But could this be enough to make a difference? That will likely depend on what, exactly, the scene and the "surprises" are, although raking in another $40 million with such a minor upgrade may be challenging, especially since Endgame will be released digitally just a few weeks later. It does help that the new release will come shortly before Spider-Man: Far From Home, though, which could draw some viewers back for one last viewing before this follow-up.
Regardless of whether this bid is successful, Disney owns both Avatar and Avengers: Endgame, making the studio's place at the top of the box office charts inevitable.
