Marvel’s Controversial Avengers: Endgame Encore Change Is Paying Off Ahead of Doomsday

Avengers: Endgame Encore is a primer for the upcoming release of Avengers: Doomsday in more ways than people think. Sure, Endgame Encore hooked a lot of fans with the promise of new bonus material that both changes the film’s original ending and links it to Doomsday, and it delivers that. However, there was another agenda at work behind the scenes, as Disney and Marvel Studios venture into carving out their own lane in the premium format theatrical business.

Disney’s “Infinity Vision” brand hasn’t had the smoothest launch so far, mostly because the average moviegoer still doesn’t seem to fully understand what it even is. However, the box office returns for Avengers: Endgame Encore are now coming in, and they indicate that Infinity Vision is getting the desired results Disney was hoping for.

Infinity Vision Generates Big Profits For Avengers: Endgame Encore

According to the latest reporting from outlets like The Wrap, “just over half of the business for Endgame Encore” came from theaters featuring the Infinity Vision brand stamp. The film topped the box office in its opening weekend, earning $26 million domestically and another $60 million internationally for a total of $86 million. This means upwards of $40+ million was earned from “Infinity Vision” theaters, proving that fans are overwhelmingly leaning toward those theaters when purchasing tickets.

That’s an important figure to note when breaking down what Infinity Vision is, and what the endgame for the campaign really is.

What Is Disney Infinity Vision? (Explained)

In short, “Infinity Vision” is a brand endorsement Disney created for movie theaters whose screens, sound systems, and overall presentation meet the “premium” standard (set by Disney).

Word of the brand launch started back in the summer, when news of Engame Encore‘s re-release and bonus materials first broke. Many figured it was yet another signature premium theatrical format like IMAX, Dolby, ScreenX or 4DX; on the contrary, though: What Disney has done is turn a much bigger number of theaters into premium format destinations, simply by helping consumers distinguish theaters with the best audio/visual quality from theaters that don’t meet the standard. And it’s clearly something the consumers appreciate. So, within a single cineplex, there may be just one IMAX or ScreenX screen, but two or three theaters that meet Infinity Vision standards and carry that brand endorsement. It also means theaters can charge a premium-level price for certain theaters that may not have had that price tag before.

Premium format companies are certainly taking notice of Disney’s move: Dolby’s VP/General Manager of Cinema, Jed Harmsen, said, “I think for premium formats as a whole, Infinity Vision is doing a good job of taking a wide array of formats that might be confusing for moviegoers to distinguish and sort of unifying them in a program that is promoting a high-quality experience.” He also may have been too quick in making it clear that Infinity Vision will not swallow up the current brands in the premium theatrical space: “We think that one of Dolby Cinema’s strengths is that it is already recognized as a signal of a premium experience, and that’s why we saw such a huge surge with ‘[Spider-Man:] Brand New Day and will keep seeing it with Doomsday.”

So far, word of mouth seems to indicate fans were overwhelmingly happy with seeing Avengers: Endgame Encore in Infinity Vision theaters. Now that the brand is out there and certified in action, all eyes will be on ticket pre-sales for Avengers: Doomsday, and whether Infinity Vision can spark some competitive purchases between fans all trying to get the “best” viewing experience. If it does, Disney will have found a very convenient alleyway into the premium format market that doesn’t really cost anything more than a small marketing budget.

Avengers: Doomsday will be in theaters on December 18th. Did you see Endgame Encore in an Infinity Vision theater? Notice any difference?

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