Joe and Anthony Russo, the directors for Avengers: Endgame, reveal that the first cut was actually shorter than the final cut.
We know that the final theatrical cut of Avengers: Endgame is going to be over three hours long – a fact that many might consider a bit lengthy but with the excitement around the upcoming film, most will be willing to forgive.
During the editing process, it is usually the case that the first cut of the film is the longest version, which is then whittled down a little by the time it makes it to cinemas. This wasn’t the case with Endgame, however, as Joe Russo – co-director of the film – explained to Collider:
“We’ve been working on this movie for well over a year in editorial because we finished it in 2018, and it literally hasn’t moved maybe more than two minutes from its original run time on the director’s cut. It’s just a tough one. There’s just a lot of story in it. We like emotional stakes that require screen time…We have almost everything in this movie that we shot… I think [our first cut] was slightly shorter than this.”
This certainly proves that the Russo’s prefer to leave as much in their films as they possibly can to give audiences the most complete experience as possible. We will soon be able to see if the 3 hours was the right choice or a little indulgent.
SEE ALSO: The Avengers: Endgame white suits are to help separate the film from Infinity War
Avengers: Endgame stars Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Chris Evans (Captain America), Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye), Josh Brolin (Thanos), Brie Larson (Captain Marvel), Paul Rudd (Scott Lang), Don Cheadle (War Machine), Karen Gillan (Nebula), Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther), Tom Holland (Spider-Man), Sebastian Stan (Winter Soldier), Anthony Mackie (Falcon), Paul Bettany (Vision), Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch), Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange), Danai Gurira (Okoye), Benedict Wong (Wong), Chris Pratt (Star-Lord), Zoe Saldana (Gamora), Dave Bautista (Drax), Bradley Cooper (Rocket), Vin Diesel (Groot), Karen Gillan (Nebula), Pom Klementieff (Mantis), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Gwyneth Paltrow (Pepper Potts), Evangeline Lilly (The Wasp), Letitia Wright (Shuri), Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie), Jon Favreau (Happy Hogan), Tilda Swinton (The Ancient One) and Frank Grillo (Crossbones), as well as Hiroyuki Sanada (The Wolverine) and Katherine Langford (13 Reasons Why).
