Avengers: Endgame Writers on the 'Lean' 3-Hour Runtime: 'It's Exactly As Long As It Needs to Be’
Fans of Avengers: Endgame may want to prepare themselves for the three-hour runtime of the highly-anticipated film.
In an interview with Vulture, the screenwriters of the Marvel film, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, insist the film is as “lean” in its runtime as possible.
“It’s exactly as long as it needs to be,” McFeely said. “Any shorter and it would have felt like we weren’t honoring all the threads and franchises that are feeding into this climax.”
The two also faced the challenge of culminating 11 years worth of movies, beginning with the release of Iron Man in 2008.
“Twenty-two movies in, not only has the movie earned its length, but people deserve a movie of that substance,” McFeely continued. “I swear to God, it sounds like a paradox to say this, but it’s a lean three hours!”
This latest installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe also sees the disappearance of half of the universe — including fan favorites such as Black Panther, the Winter Soldier, Spider-Man and Nick Fury to name a few — something villain Thanos did with just a snap of his fingers and six Infinity Stones.
The only heroes left must find a way to recover their loved ones and defeat Thanos.
RELATED: Get Your Popcorn Ready! Avengers: Endgame Has a Reported Runtime of 3 Hours and 2 Minutes
“If we told you the entire universe got snapped out and we were gonna wrap it up in a tight 85, you’d have issues,” Markus said.
Tickets to see Avengers: Endgame went on sale earlier this month causing fans to crash tickets sites like Fandango. The film broke records and became the best first-day U.S. sales record for the website, beating Star Wars: The Force Awakens in just six hours, according to Deadline.
RELATED VIDEO: Scarlett Johansson’s Daughter Rose Thinks ‘Mommy’s a Superhero’ for a Living
Black Panther star Winston Duke teased the film would be “bigger” than last year’s blockbuster hit Infinity War.
“Honestly, what I can tell you is that it’s bigger than Infinity War … It’s going to be a lot of fun, going to be crazy, and they have a way of still topping themselves when you feel like they might have jumped the shark,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “They still have a way of making it new.”
Avengers: Endgame flies into theaters April 26.
