Avengers: Endgame is back at number one. The re-release, subtitled Avengers: Endgame: Encore, topped the North American box office last weekend with roughly $26.1 million, adding about $60 million overseas for an $86 million global haul. Marvel timed the comeback to build momentum for Avengers: Doomsday, which opens December 18, 2026, and stars Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom. With both films now trending in search at the same time, here is what is driving the numbers and what to expect next.
Avengers: Endgame Re-Release Box Office Numbers
Endgame: Encore’s $26.1 million domestic opening was enough to beat every new wide release last weekend, a rare feat for a seven-year-old film. It is also the third-biggest re-release debut in box office history, trailing only the 1997 reissue of the original Star Wars ($35.9 million) and 2011’s The Lion King 3D ($30.2 million). The extra revenue has pushed Endgame’s lifetime worldwide total to about $2.88 billion, closing the gap with Avatar’s all-time record.
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Unlike a typical rerelease that simply reprints the original film, Encore runs about four minutes longer than the 2019 cut, with new footage built specifically to connect to Doomsday.
Why Marvel Brought Endgame Back Right Now
The timing is deliberate. Endgame originally closed out the Infinity Saga in 2019, and Marvel is using its theatrical return to reintroduce casual fans to the MCU right before Doomsday arrives in December. Rather than relying only on trailers, the studio gave longtime fans a reason to buy a ticket again, while using four brand-new scenes to explain how Doctor Doom fits into the story.
What’s New in Avengers: Endgame: Encore
The four added scenes are the real reason Encore is trending. Here is what each one shows:
- Steve and Peggy’s interrupted dance: A quiet moment between Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter is cut short by a knock at the door. It is Loki, wearing his Time Variance Authority jacket.
- The Hulk meets Doctor Doom: Bruce Banner is recording a video log from an underground lab two miles beneath the Earth, working on a gamma-suppression serum, when Doctor Doom appears and says he has come to “collect” him before teleporting them both away.
- The multiverse starts to collapse: A scene set at the Time Variance Authority shows two separate universes, including the Fox Studios X-Men universe, beginning to merge into one.
- Doctor Doom’s mask is forged: Where the original Endgame ended its credits with only a metallic clanging sound, Encore pairs that same sound with flashes of Doctor Doom’s mask being forged.
Together, the scenes tie directly into Marvel’s larger Multiverse Saga and set up several of the threats Doomsday will deal with.
Avengers: Doomsday Release Date and Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom
Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to open in theaters on December 18, 2026, directed by Joe and Anthony Russo from a script by Michael Waldron and Stephen McFeely. The biggest talking point remains Robert Downey Jr.’s casting as Victor von Doom, better known as Doctor Doom, marking his first MCU role since Tony Stark’s death in Avengers: Endgame. The Russos have described Doomsday as a “complete reinvention” of the franchise, with Doom positioned as a threat serious enough that even Earth’s most powerful heroes are afraid of him.
Who Else Is in Avengers: Doomsday
Marvel has confirmed more than 30 cast members so far, pulling characters from across the MCU and the Fox X-Men universe into one film:
- Returning Avengers: Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Anthony Mackie (Captain America), Sebastian Stan (Winter Soldier), Letitia Wright (Shuri), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova) and the Thunderbolts
- Fantastic Four: Pedro Pascal (Reed Richards), Vanessa Kirby (Sue Storm), Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Ben Grimm) and Joseph Quinn (Johnny Storm)
- X-Men, played by their original actors: Patrick Stewart (Charles Xavier), Ian McKellen (Magneto), Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), James Marsden (Cyclops), Kelsey Grammer (Beast) and Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler)
- Other MCU characters: Simu Liu (Shang-Chi), Channing Tatum (Gambit), Tenoch Huerta Mejía (Namor), Winston Duke, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Hannah John-Kamen, Danny Ramirez, Kathryn Newton, Lewis Pullman and Mabel Cadena
Anthony Russo has said additional cast members are still unannounced, so this list is expected to grow before Marvel’s next big-screen chapter reaches theaters.
Why Endgame and Doomsday Searches Are Climbing Together
Endgame: Encore’s theatrical run is functioning as a marketing campaign disguised as a nostalgia trip. Every new scene was built to answer a specific Doomsday question, from how Doctor Doom operates to which universes are colliding, so audiences leaving the re-release are searching for the answers immediately afterward. That overlap explains why both films are showing up in the same search trends this week, and Marvel is likely to lean on it again as Doomsday’s December release gets closer.
Avengers: Endgame Re-Release and Doomsday: FAQ
How much did Avengers: Endgame’s re-release make at the box office?
Avengers: Endgame: Encore earned about $26.1 million domestically and $86 million worldwide in its opening weekend, enough to finish first at the North American box office.
When does Avengers: Doomsday come out?
Avengers: Doomsday is set to open in theaters on December 18, 2026.
Is Robert Downey Jr. playing Doctor Doom?
Yes. Robert Downey Jr., who played Tony Stark/Iron Man through the Infinity Saga, returns to the MCU as Victor von Doom, also known as Doctor Doom, in Avengers: Doomsday.
What new scenes were added to Avengers: Endgame: Encore?
Encore adds four new scenes: an interrupted moment between Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter, the Hulk being confronted by Doctor Doom, a glimpse of two universes colliding at the Time Variance Authority, and a final post-credits look at Doctor Doom’s mask being forged.
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