Avengers: Endgame has turned out to be every bit the megahit that people were predicting it to be, but if you ask co-directors Anthony and Joe Russo, it’s a shame that the movie’s box office success is currently overshadowing the content of the film.
Speaking on the ReelBlend Podcast, Anthony went as far as to say that he’s almost disappointed at how well the Avengers: Infinity War sequel has been doing, since he feel this distracts from more interesting matters:
“I have to be honest with you. I’m almost disappointed that the movie did so well, because it’s like, the box office story is literally dominating the conversation and it’s not the most interesting part of the story.”
To be fair, the Russo Brothers themselves have actively discouraged fans from talking about the content of Endgame, for fear of spoiling plot details. Granted, they’ve recently said that the spoiler ban officially lifts on Monday, but given the film’s phenomenal box office figures, it’s clear that a huge number of moviegoers already know the full story.
In any case, Joe Russo went on to observe how people have created a narrative around Endgame’s box office performance, which has saddled the project with some daunting expectations:
“It’s always about the narrative, too, of these movies in the marketplace. How did it do? Did it break a record? Did it beat the last one? That stuff is really critical to the life of a movie. And of course, we were hoping that it was going to break the international record. Because that’s a story, right?”
“And then you’re hoping and praying that it beats the domestic, which was set by Infinity War last year. Otherwise, frankly, [for] some people looks like a failure. It’s crazy that a movie like this has these kinds of demands on it.”
Regardless, it’s clear that we’re now well past the point where anyone could characterize Endgame as a commercial failure. By the end of its second weekend, it’s expected that the film will become the fastest movie ever to cross the $2 billion mark. And in the coming weeks, the flick has a very good chance of beating Avatar to become the highest grossing film of all time.
In short, while the Russo Brothers may be a little upset that Avengers: Endgame’s box office figures are dominating the conversation, it’s doubtful that the bosses at Disney are losing much sleep over the matter.
