The movie’s creators have hinted at almost nothing, except for the promise of finality.
Not that the actors can talk about that.
“No, that’s Sam Jackson,” Feige objects.
(At least for now.)
Until that changes, Downey declares Feige “Interim Fury!”
To wrangle the Avengers, you need all the help you might get.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You guys can’t talk aboutEndgame, right?
But that’s the new movie.KEVIN FEIGE:Correct.ROBERT DOWNEY JR.: That is correct.
At some point.FEIGE:No, no, no.
Don’t even say that!RENNER:Or it’s all continuous.
I mean, honestly, it is so stressful.
CHRIS HEMSWORTH:Wait, wait, that was actually genius!
All [viewers] could hear was laughing.
They went, “It must be good!
I thought they were coming to scream at me Barry, he threw his arms around me.
“That was genius!
We got more press than we could have possibly paid for!
People always ask, what do you bring to your character?
There’s more of me in the character now than ever.
Other times, you’re free to’t wait to get back to it.
And that’s the fun thing about the role [of Captain America].
Usually when you’re done, you shut the book and move on.
This one, you just put it on hiatus because you know you’re coming back.
You’re visiting an old friend.
How do you feel about that, Robert?
[Pauses] Hell, ifI’vebeen, then it’s completely impossible.
That’s probably reflective of a lot of the dreams we’ve all had.
I met this girl yesterday who was a Black Widow superfan.
She was like, “I saw the first movie with you [in 2010’sIron Man 2].
I first saw Black Widow when I was 6.”
Now she was 15 and she was like, “I grew up with you!”
Anything the actors tweet or say about the characters gets people really worked up.
Does that feel odd?
What does it make you feel?RUFFALO:A little scared.
You become more careful.
You have a bigger responsibility.
You also see the power of storytelling.
We’re able to transcend some of the divisive narratives that are happening now.
These stories do touch a lot of different kinds of people with different kinds of beliefs.
AndThe Avengersis really about coming together, too.RUFFALO:Yeah, it is.
It’s about unifying.
And it’s about people who have [differences], andCivil Waris the ultimate example of that.
[Downey throws an arm around Evans, and the stars squeeze each other, smiling broadly.]
And look at you now!RUFFALO:Yeah, I know, theyloveeach other!
I always feel like somehow we’re always one or two steps ahead of the political scene.
You know, the bad guys win sometimes.
And we lose good people.
Unless you lose sometimes, you don’t value winning and winning doesn’t mean anything.
I think you’re back to zero [with Marvel] now.
We’ve announcedEndgameandSpider-Man: Far From Home.JOHANSSON:[Draws deep breath] The PTSD is a real thing!
I have so much anxiety!
I don’t know that I have total perspective on it, but the character has certainly grown.
He was like, “She was undercover!”
And what do I want?
And what do I need out of my relationships and also out of my own self?”
She’s someone who’s understanding her own self-worth.
It’s definitely shown some sort of path for these other female superheroes to be able to walk down.
I certainly don’t take credit for that, though.
Not bythisguy, by the way.
[Points at Feige] Never.
But that was industry standard thinking.
I think Black Widow helped change that a lot.JOHANSSON:For sure.
And I think [AvengersandAge of Ultronwriter-director] Joss [Whedon] was a huge part of that too.
He is such a huge believer in strong female characters and story lines.
He really celebrated the characters' flaws and wanted to bring them to light.
I say flaws not really, but what she perceives [flaws] to be.
As Tony Stark says in the new movie, part of the journey is the end.
We said goodbye to Stan Lee last year after a big, long life.
Go!RUFFALO:Playing Hulk is like my generation’sHamlet: We’reallgoing to get a chance to do it.
[Forced laughter] So I was really nervous about “Would I kindly him?”
I didn’t meet him until the premiere ofThe Avengers.
I walked up to him sheepishly, and he’s like, “Hey!”
and he’s like, “You got it, kid!”
I was like, “Aww, that’s amazing!
Thank you, Mr. How about you, Robert, on the firstIron Man?
He’s like all of us.
[Laughs] It went completely downhill after that.
I was like, I amexactlylike him.
It all goes downhill after Take One.
But you should stop after that.
[Laughs, sits back looking self-satisfied] “Aaand…he guided it back to himself!
“JOHANSSON:I also had a similar moment as Mark when I saw him.
I think it was after theIron Man 2premiere, and I was just so nervous.
[Emily Blunt had been offered the role first.]
I made a career out of that!
I had a big sigh of relief after that.
Every interaction was what one’s dream interaction with Stan Lee would be.
He made that come true every single time.
It was: “Fearless Feige!
Stan Lee here!”
I listened to it over and over and over.
That’s what he was always like.
Always supportive.EVANS:See, I’m going back toFantastic Four.
So one of my first interactions with him is all caught on video.
And I found the footage!
He just made me feel right at home.RENNER:I aspire to be as strong-minded.
The guy lived an amazing life.
When you spent time with him, you just knew this guy was burning with the fire of life.
He had a great sense of humor and a smart, smart mind.
I hope and aspire to be anywhere half of what he was as a man.
It’s really fantastic.HEMSWORTH:He just had a childlike wonder and enthusiasm.
He’s the perfect example.
Some movies disappear from people’s minds after a week.
These Marvel movies have endured for a decade.
I just don’t think it’s ever going to happen again.
“Look what Feige’s done!”
How do you do a series of films?
That would be nice.RENNER:I absolutely can guarantee that.
It’s likeStar Wars…HEMSWORTH:Which was just three films!JOHANSSON:Indiana Jones, maybe.
It’s such a small group.
James Bond, for sure,Mission: Impossible.
Bond was about constant reinvention.Star Warshas a similar continuity, but that was a big start-and-stop thing.
[Marvel’s films] all took place in a finite amount of time.
[Laughs] And that finite amount of time isa decade!
That’s a huge landscape that he managed to make into this unbelievable ribbon of continuity.
What’s fun for me on the tail end is…I’m intimidated by actors.
So they’re almost like a whole other species.
It takes me about 10 years to get comfortable with people [Laughter].
Particularly when you’re wearing the [motion-capture] suit.RENNER:In the pajamas!
Like it was DEFCON 5.
Now I seefearin your eyes.
FEIGE:I don’t have any regrets creatively.
I do regret that we haven’t had more time around tables like this together.
I’ll nerd out for a moment.
[Looks around]
FEIGE:Why am I talking aboutStar Trek?
and he goes “Yeah, I’m doing something I should have done alongtime ago.”
But it wouldn’t be poker with this team.
It would be Boggle.
And I would beterrible!
Is that the Avengers game?
Boggle?FEIGE:Boggle!
It’s something I should have done a long time ago.
For more onAvengers: Endgame, pick up the new issue of Entertainment Weekly on stands Friday.
