With a runtime of 3 hours and 58 seconds, there’s been some speculation lately that the opening weekend gross of Avengers: Endgame will be limited slightly by the number of showings that the film can get per day. But while there are only so many times that one screen can show the Avengers: Infinity War sequel over the course of a single weekend, it sounds like theaters are making up the difference in a big way.
According to ComicBook.com, Anthony and Joe Russo’s latest film is showing on a record-breaking 4,600 domestic screens on opening weekend. This will include screens in 3,900 standard theaters across the United States and Canada, as well as 410 IMAX screens and 250 D-Box theaters.
Right now, the record for widest release is held by Despicable Me 3, which showed on 4,535 screens in 2017. In second place with 4,485 screens is Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, followed by Infinity War, which showed at 4,474 theaters.
Not only is Endgame set to beat those numbers, but many theaters are also working overtime to cram in as many showtimes per screen as possible. 18 AMC theaters, for instance, are open nonstop Thursday through Saturday, while an additional 17 locations will keep going into Sunday, staying open for 72 hours straight. And as excessive as that might sound, these preparations seem all too natural when you consider the film’s phenomenal opening weekend projections.
As it stands, most forecasts have Endgame beating the domestic opening record held by Infinity War of $257 million. Box office chief analyst Shawn Robbins, for example, recently suggested that a $300 million opening could end up being “very probable.” A staggering figure, to say the least, but we’ll find out if the film can match these expectations when Avengers: Endgame hits theaters on April 26th.
