Avengers: Endgame Opening Weekend Canada Interview

April 29, 2019 at 1:13am

Interview with Greg Mason, VP of Marketing at Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada

Endgame is setting some incredible records, could you briefly go over what it has already achieved in its opening weekend?

Greg: Sure, as of Sunday it already achieved the biggest opening weekend of all time, before the Sunday box office even came in. So with estimates in, it’ll be the biggest opening weekend of all time at 28.5 MM beating Infinity War at 19.7 MM for Canada. Those are Canadian numbers.

Building on that, what are some of the numbers for the global box office for Endgame?

Greg: About 1.2 billion all in worldwide, North America with 350 million, hitting records all over the globe. Which we’re incredibly proud of it.

Looking at this from a purely a Canadian perspective, it now tops the chart for an opening weekend, do you anticipate continued success in the local market?

Greg: We do indeed, quick peek into that, looking into advanced sales numbers. Canadians as you probably know go very often on a Tuesday night. Tuesday will be really, really strong, along with the rest of the week. It looks like this is one film that people need to see more than once, even though its three hours long. There’s so much to see in the film, that there are things you want to go back and look for. Some really great Easter Eggs in there.

The movie is certainly off to a great start, what are your thoughts on the film possibly reaching the heights of Avatar in terms of topping the overall box office? Do you feel Endgame could achieve this?

Greg: After this weekend, I’ll tell ya, anything is possible. There’s an expression that said nothing is impossible until it’s done. Avatar which is now in the family, certainly did some amazing numbers in the US and Canada. I look at that record, I do think it’s possible, you never know how films are going to play. I certainly do think it could be possible

With this being the end of the Infinity Saga, do you feel that future Marvel films will perform similarly or is a slight decline anticipated due to the end of this era?

Greg: Right now we’re enjoying the moment we’re having with Endgame. I have so much faith in the production team, in Kevin Feige, Louis, Victoria. Where they’re headed, that it’s certainly hard to tell how it’s going to hit performance wise. Story wise, creativity, thousands of characters in the Marvel universe and knowing where they’re going to go. I think there’s some really special movies and special things coming for Marvel fans.

Captain Marvel recently released, did that perform to expectations and do you feel that it acted as a boost to Endgame?

Greg: It far exceeded our goals. We were honestly, just watching the numbers and were blown away. We knew there was a great fan base and we’re absolutely thrilled with the results.

Lastly I would like to leave a spot for you to just mention what we should be looking forward to film wise in the near future?

Greg: I think most fans realized they needed to see Captain Marvel before this film. Need may be a strong word. Should see it, since she’s so important in the Marvel universe. What’s so interesting is that the film has continued to play and play. It actually rose up in the box office this weekend and it’s the number two film this weekend. So you can tell with the Marvel fans, that I’m going to see this right before and then go into Endgame. I’ve never seen that before, that it rose so much.

I’m going to assume that Disney was pleased with the opening weekend, did the film track according the goals that were set for it?

Greg: The film far exceeded all our goals worldwide. We’ve been looking at numbers all weekend that we never anticipated would be there. It’s such a tribute to the film makers, but we’re just so very thankful for the fans across Canada. You’ll hear our film makers say it, our talent say it, us in the business side say it. We’re just so very thankful to the Marvel fans, across Canada and the world. They’re embracing the characters, these stories.

We know that they’re very personal for a lot of people, mean a lot of things for a lot of people. I think the company goes to great lengths and care to make sure that these things are done right. We’re so appreciative of the fan base that’s out there. I think once you see the film, you’ll see that there’s a real love letter to fans with Endgame.

Lastly I would like to leave a spot for you to say something or go over anything I might have missed during the interview?

Greg: We’re just thrilled with the performance of the film and we’re just overwhelmed today and so pleased with the fans in Canada.

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