’Avengers Endgame: Encore’ Previews Signal a Big Weekend as Fans Rave About the Return
Seven years after it shattered records, ‘Avengers Endgame: Encore‘ is proving that Marvel’s biggest film still knows how to draw a crowd. When the original ‘Endgame’ opened in April 2019, it earned a record $60 million from Thursday night previews and $157 million on opening day, on its way to a $357.1 million debut weekend.
The re-release doesn’t need to come close to those figures to be a success. Tickets went on sale in August, and ComicBasics reported that the film shattered the biggest first-day presales record for any theatrical re-release, surpassing a mark held by ‘Titanic’s 2012 3D re-release for 14 years.
Now the first real numbers are in. According to box office tracker Itsjat32, whose post was widely shared on Reddit’s r/boxoffice, the Encore looks to have earned around $4 million from previews, with word of mouth described as extremely positive.
The tracker also pointed to strong presales heading into the weekend and said they expect a debut of $25 million or more. Deadline’s own reporting was slightly more conservative, putting previews at $3 million-plus, with a chance of surpassing the $3.4 million earned by ‘Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith’s re-release, which turned into a $25.4 million opening.
Reassemble the team & relive the experience as Avengers Endgame: Encore returns to theaters September 25.
— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) August 25, 2026
Tickets now available for IMAX and Infinity Vision screens: https://t.co/pZZ4PiOyQb pic.twitter.com/2wKSVG4FLz
Deadline also offered a note of caution. Re-releases can sometimes be front-loaded, meaning early enthusiasm doesn’t always carry through the full weekend. Most industry estimates line up around the same range. Variety’s tracking has the re-release earning $25 million to $28 million, while Deadline puts it at $25 million to $30 million heading into the weekend.
The Encore is playing in around 3,000 theaters, according to Deadline, including 1,300 Infinity Vision premium screens and 390 IMAX locations. It will share those premium screens with Zach Cregger’s ‘Resident Evil’, which is expected to earn $21 million to $24 million in its second weekend.
The competition is stiffer than usual. A24’s ‘Primetime’, starring Robert Pattinson, is chasing the Encore with $2 million to $3 million in previews, and Deadline reported that the $15 million film has a shot at a $20 million opening.
One distributor even told Deadline that the weekend could turn into a 3-way fight for No. 1. Brad Pitt’s ‘Heart of the Beast’ and DreamWorks’ ‘Forgotten Island’ also join the crowded lineup.
The Encore is performing well internationally too. Koimoi reported that the film finished its presales in China with $3.1 million and earned $975,000 from Thursday previews there, beating the presales totals of ‘Aquaman 2’, ‘The Marvels’, and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’.
Deadline expects around $25 million from overseas markets, setting up a global weekend of roughly $50 million. That matters because ‘Endgame’ still trails ‘Avatar’ as the highest-grossing film of all time by $124.3 million.
New trailer for ‘Avengers: Doomsday’
— Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) August 15, 2026
In theaters December 18 pic.twitter.com/1wsiTk1Nnv
Much of the excitement comes from the new footage tying directly into ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, which opens December 18. Director Joe Russo has described the re-release as required viewing for following the story in the upcoming sequel.
Do you think Avengers: Endgame Encore will top the box office with a $25 million+ opening?
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