Avengers: Endgame is five years old, which means two things: 1) We’re getting old (if we're not there already, if we’re being honest) and 2) It’s time to take a trip down memory lane on what was one of the best cinema experiences of all time.
In truth, Endgame delivered on the impossible hype. In the run-up to release, we were all distracted by debates over the three-hour runtime, the surprisingly spoiler-free marketing, and even what was then-Avengers 4 would be called (we still recall an A-shaped upright ladder in a Russos Brothers tease leading people to speculate it would be called Avengers: Annihilation).
Then, we got it. The portals. On your left. The snap. Each moment left an indelible mark on pop culture. For many, it was their Star Wars – something they’d tell the grandkids they lived through.
For me, personally, it was the wildest audience I’ve ever seen. UK crowds are used to a quick chuckle and maybe a light applause if we’re really feeling it. This was unprecedented. People were hugging strangers when Captain America caught Mjolnir.
Marvel Studios, of course, has been chasing that high ever since – and it’s no surprise that audiences have dipped in Marvel Phases 4 and 5 given just how well they stuck the landing. It felt like the end of everything. And it’s that lightning-in-a-bottle farewell that fans are fondly remembering five years on.
"Five years ago, I walked out of AVENGERS: ENDGAME and said it was one of the best movie experiences I'd ever had. Now...I'd still say it. An event that honestly, as a kid, I thought I'd never see, and I'm glad I got to," critic Shaurya Chawla said on Twitter.
"Endgame wasn’t a film, it was an experience, you had to be there to enjoy it Pure goosebumps," another wrote.
Elsewhere, the praise is similarly still effusive. "It still feels like the super superhero event that no one has been able to top," one fan remarked.
@3801productions said, "A lot of people say the MCU should’ve ended with this movie. Safe to say it just hasn’t quite been the same ever since…."
"Since today is the 5th anniversary of the release of Avengers: Endgame, I wanted to give an appreciation shoutout to the real MVP of the whole dang movie: Alan Silvestri," one tweeted, referring to Endgame’s composer. "His score absolutely MADE this movie. The ‘Portals’ theme is nothing short of iconic."
Inevitably, in the years since, there has been talk of the likes of Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans reprising their long-departed roles as Iron Man and Captain America respectively.
The Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo, in turn, have responded to Downey Jr’s claims that he would "happily" return to the MCU fold with some bemusement.
"I don’t know how they would do it. I don’t know what the road to that would be [laughs]," Anthony Russo told GamesRadar+ at the Sands: International Film Festival in St Andrews, Scotland.
Joe Russo added: "I mean we closed that book so it would be up to them to figure out how to reopen it."
Next up for Marvel is Deadpool & Wolverine, starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman. For more on the MCU, check out the latest on these upcoming Marvel movies. Want to relive the road to Endgame? You’ll need our guide on how to watch the Marvel movies in order.
