Though Avengers: Endgame has yet settle on an official runtime, it’s currently looking like a very distinct possibility that the film will end up being a 3-hour watch, which would only figure given the insane number of characters that co-directors Anthony and Joe Russo are expected to pack into the movie.
As evidenced by the success of major franchises like The Lord of the Rings, audiences are perfectly willing to take a chance on films of this length if the material interests them enough. But for the sake of making things just a little easier on viewers, some have suggested that it may be a good idea for the Avengers: Infinity War sequel to include an intermission. The subject came up in Collider’s recent interview with the Russo Brothers, but going by the pair’s comments, the two of them seem to be leaning towards letting the movie play uninterrupted.
Joe Russo was the first to comment on the matter, saying:
“We joke about [an intermission] in the edit room, but…”
From here, Anthony Russo cut in with his own observation:
“We have screened the movie four times for audiences now. For the first three screenings, not a single person got up to go to the bathroom.”
Joe then joked that they “took that as a good sign,” and perhaps with good reason. From the sound of things, most viewers have both a strong enough interest and strong enough bladders to last the duration of the picture, suggesting that despite the recent rumors, an intermission-free Endgame is more likely than not.
Regardless, it remains to be seen just how long the movie will be, but at the very least, it feels like a safe bet that this will be the MCU’s longest feature film to date. In the same interview with Collider, Joe Russo observed how telling a complicated story “requires a certain amount of real estate,” adding that “this one, in particular, feels like three hours’ worth of real estate.” You can judge for yourself if Avengers: Endgame warrants such a generous runtime when the film hits theaters on April 26th, 2019.