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21 Essential Movies to Watch Before Avengers: Endgame Encore
Avengers: Endgame Encore brings Avengers: Endgame back to theaters on September 25, 2026, ahead of Avengers: Doomsday. Every screening includes an exclusive look at Doomsday, and IMAX and Disney's new Infinity Vision format add an extra sneak peek on top of it. The story itself has not changed. You do not need all 158 MCU titles to follow it. You need 21 movies, about 44.8 hours, watched in the right order. This is that list, pulled straight from the same connection data that powers the free planner, trimmed to films only so you can actually finish it before showtime.
Same film, so the same prep
Encore is not a new chapter — it is the 2019 film back on the big screen, so preparing for it means exactly what preparing for the original Endgame always meant. If you have already watched Endgame and everything that leads into it, you are done; there is nothing new to catch up on. This list exists for everyone else: newcomers using the re-release as a reason to finally see it in a theater, or anyone who wants the full story fresh before the new footage.
What is actually new in the Encore cut
Every screening of the Encore adds an exclusive look at Avengers: Doomsday, and IMAX and Infinity Vision screens add a further sneak peek on top of that. The Russo brothers have described the new material as a bridge into Doomsday, but Marvel has not said what it shows, and this guide will not guess. Nothing about the Endgame story itself changes, whichever screen you pick.
Which screening to book
If the new Doomsday footage is the reason you are going, book IMAX or Infinity Vision. Those screens show everything a standard screening does, plus the extra sneak peek that standard screens do not get. If you just want Endgame on a big screen again, a standard screening still gives you the full film and a look at Doomsday, usually for less than a premium ticket. The listed running time is 3h 5m, and it moves by a few minutes between formats because of that extra footage, so leave yourself a little slack either way.
How to actually watch these before the film
The list below is in story order, not release order, which is what avoids spoiling later films with earlier ones. If 44.8 hours sounds like a lot with a release date bearing down on you, the free planner on this site will split it across your actual week and tell you whether you will finish in time.
Budgeting the 44.8 hours
At 44.8 hours across 21 films, that is about 23 evenings at a typical two hours a night, or a couple of relaxed weekends, or one long binge if you would rather clear it in a sitting. If that is more time than you have before showtime, don't guess at what to cut. The planner ranks these by story position and tells you exactly which ones you would still be mid-way through on your target date.
If opening weekend is too soon
For most people, 44.8 hours will not fit into the days before opening weekend, and it does not need to. The Encore is the same Endgame on the first night of its run and the last, so this list works just as well for a later screening. Pick the date you can actually make, then let the planner tell you whether the list fits before it.
After the Encore: Avengers: Doomsday
The Encore is the warm-up for Avengers: Doomsday, which opens December 18, 2026. If Doomsday is where you are really headed, this list is only part of the way there. Doomsday draws on a much wider stretch of the MCU than Endgame does, and the site has a separate Doomsday guide with its own list and planner. Doing this list first is a head start rather than a detour: the Doomsday guide covers these films and goes further.
Avengers: Endgame Encore
Captain America: The First Avenger The origin of Steve Rogers and the first Infinity Stone (Tesseract). Sets the moral compass the Avengers are built around.
2h 4m 2
Captain Marvel Carol Danvers becomes the most powerful hero in the MCU. Her 1990s origin explains why she's been off-world — and why she answers when called.
2h 4m 3
Iron Man Tony Stark reveals he's Iron Man — the moment the MCU began. His Avengers Initiative conversation with Fury seeds everything that follows.
2h 6m 4
Iron Man 2 Introduces War Machine (James Rhodes), Black Widow, and the wider S.H.I.E.L.D. world. Rhodes is confirmed for Doomsday.
2h 4m 5
The Incredible Hulk Bruce Banner's MCU origin. Establishes the Abomination and the tension between Bruce and the Hulk that runs all the way through Endgame. Hulk confirmed for Doomsday.
1h 52m 6
Thor Thor's origin and Loki's discovery that he's adopted. Their rivalry defines a decade of MCU storytelling — Loki's journey from villain here ends at his sacrifice in Loki S2. Thor confirmed for Doomsday.
1h 55m 7
The Avengers The original team assembles to stop Loki and the Tesseract. The template all future team-up films follow. Mid-credits: Thanos is revealed for the first time.
2h 23m 8
Iron Man 3 Tony's PTSD after the Battle of New York. He destroys all his suits to prove he doesn't need the armor — only to rebuild bigger in Age of Ultron.
2h 10m 9
Thor: The Dark World The Reality Stone (Aether) is introduced and recovered. Loki fakes his death and secretly takes Odin's throne — directly setting up Ragnarok.
1h 52m 10
Captain America: The Winter Soldier S.H.I.E.L.D. has been HYDRA since its founding. Bucky Barnes is alive as the Winter Soldier. Steve's world is shattered — this is where the Avengers fracture begins. Bucky and Sam both confirmed for Doomsday.
2h 16m 11
Guardians of the Galaxy The Power Stone and the wider cosmic MCU. Peter, Gamora, Rocket, Groot, Drax — the team whose sacrifices in Infinity War are among the most devastating.
2h 1m 12
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Ego (a Celestial) is Peter's father and the villain. Yondu sacrifices himself to save Peter. Emotionally the strongest Guardians film — but the team has disbanded with no confirmed Doomsday payoff.
2h 16m 13
Avengers: Age of Ultron Tony creates Ultron from the Mind Stone — an act of hubris that creates Vision and triggers the Sokovia Accords. The Avengers fracture begins here.
2h 21m 14
Ant-Man Scott Lang becomes Ant-Man. Introduces the Quantum Realm, which becomes the key to time travel in Endgame. Scott confirmed for Doomsday.
1h 57m 15
Captain America: Civil War The Avengers split over the Sokovia Accords. Tony learns Bucky killed his parents. Steve and Tony's friendship fractures permanently. Spider-Man and Black Panther debut. Bucky, Sam, and Steve all confirmed for Doomsday.
2h 27m 16
Black Panther T'Challa becomes king and opens Wakanda to the world. Shuri and Namor both confirmed for Doomsday.
2h 14m 17
Spider-Man: Homecoming Peter's first MCU solo film. Tony mentors him, then steps back. The foundation for who Peter is when No Way Home breaks him.
2h 13m 18
Doctor Strange Stephen Strange becomes Sorcerer Supreme. Introduces the Time Stone and the magic system. Strange's spellwork underpins No Way Home, Multiverse of Madness, and feeds Doomsday.
1h 55m 19
Thor: Ragnarok Hela destroys Mjolnir and Asgard itself. Thor loses his eye. 'Asgard is not a place — it's a people.' The Asgardian refugees on their escape ship are who Thanos ambushes in the opening of Infinity War. Thor confirmed for Doomsday.
2h 10m 20
Ant-Man and the Wasp Janet van Dyne is rescued from the Quantum Realm. Ghost (confirmed for Doomsday) is introduced and partially healed. The post-credits shows the snap happening in real time.
1h 58m 21
Avengers: Infinity War Thanos collects all six Infinity Stones and snaps away half of all life. Doctor Strange gives the Time Stone intentionally — 'We're in the endgame now.' This is the pivot everything before leads to and everything after responds to.
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