15 Characters With The Most Screen Time In Avengers: Endgame

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been responsible for bringing dozens of beloved comic book characters onto the big screen, and Avengers: Endgame brought them all together. Following the devastating Snap, when Thanos used the Infinity Stones to turn half of all life in the universe to dust, the Avengers & co. set out to bring back all the lives lost.

The culmination of the MCU’s 21 previous films, Endgame was an explosive conclusion to over a decade of cinematic history. It’s no surprise, then, that it is also the franchise’s longest-running film to date. Let’s take a look at the Endgame characters who got the most screen time.

Updated on March 5th, 2022 by Ben Hathaway: The Marvel Cinematic Universe is an increasingly-complex organism that’s irrevocably altered the thinking of the film industry. Studios aren’t focused on a sequel anymore, they’re now focused on sequels, plural, and spin-offs. Avengers: Endgame was the ultimate payoff of that mentality and that means lots of characters and lots of screen time.

15 Pepper Potts/Rescue

Screen Time: 4 Mins. 15 Secs.

Pepper Potts finally got her “superhero landing” moment in Iron Man 3, but it was really in Avengers: Endgame where she got her spotlight. However, it wasn’t for long.

Pepper Potts has a bit towards the beginning of Infinity War that’s impactful. She’s setting up a life with Tony Stark. Then, in Endgame, she’s done just that, and the audience can feel the happiness. Her standing by his and the other Avengers’ side in the ultimate battle is a worthy moment, but it’s not much more than a moment.

14 Falcon

Screen Time: 4 Mins. 30 Sec.

Among the more unpopular opinions about The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is that Sam is not worthy of being the next Cap. But Endgame kind of set it up the best way it could be set up. Nothing lasts forever, the Russos knew that, and they orchestrated it so an arc was wrapped up in an organic way.

In short, Falcon’s time to shine was not Endgame. That movie was Cap’s (hence him being a cameo in Infinity War). Falcon’s true time to shine was, and is still, to come.

13 Gamora

Screen Time: 4 Mins. 45 Sec.

Infinity War and Endgame are one big 5.5-hour movie. Gamora is a massive part of those first 2 hours. However, after her death (which is the most substantial part of the narrative’s momentum), her part is understandably diminished.

In Endgame, her major part is a thing of the past (one of them, at least) and her role is mostly nonexistent. However, in the final battle, Gamora gets to make a solid crack about Peter Quill.

12 Captain Marvel

Screen Time: 6 Mins.

Carol Danvers, A.K.A. Captain Marvel, got quite a lot of screen time in 2019 but most of it wasn’t in Avengers: Endgame.

She’s in the first 10 minutes before disappearing for 2 hours. But the audience is aware she’s there, floating in the galaxy. When she dives in and saves the day, it isn’t exactly surprising but it’s a memorable moment. With an actor of Brie Larson’s talent (which is more than formidable), the audience wants more from Marvel in the endgame besides a quick, explosive moment in the first 5 minutes and some big moments in the finale.

11 Rocket

Screen Time: 8 Mins. 15 Sec.

It’s pretty surprising Rocket is only in 8 minutes of the massive Endgame. He was one of the survivors of Thanos’ snap. But, of the Guardians survivors, Rocket isn’t really the star.

Nebula had the more interesting arc; her time with Thanos would consistently be more effective than Rocket’s quips and he really didn’t end up serving as much of a purpose in Endgame, which is a shame, because Bradley Cooper’s vocal work as the character plays very well with the ensemble.

10 War Machine (James Rhodes)

Screen Time: 9 Mins. 15 Sec.

After not getting much of the spotlight during the Avengers: Infinity War narrative, Rhodey takes the stage again in Endgame as one of the remaining members of the team to survive the Snap. He travels with them to the Garden and participates in killing Thanos.

Five years later, he is found to be one of the few Avengers still active in the fight for humanity, even after most of his teammates had given up. His part in the time heist takes him to the planet Morag, where he and Nebula obtain the Power Stone.

9 Thanos

Screen Time: 12 Mins. 15 Sec.

After leading in screen time in the previous Avengers film, Thanos again plays a significant role despite the main timeline version of him being killed near the beginning of the movie.

Where Infinity War had given fans a glimpse of Thanos’ mission in its earlier stages, his role in Endgame followed the same story at a later time in 2012, not long before the time Guardians of the Galaxy takes place.

8 Ant-Man (Scott Lang)

Screen Time: 13 Mins. 15 Sec.

His and Hope’s absence from the Infinity War lineup was a glaring omission, as they were two of the only heroes not to be involved in keeping the Infinity Stones from Thanos. However, the end credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp revealed their whereabouts at the time of the Snap, which left Scott in the quantum realm with no way out.

His accidental escape five years later and alerting the Avengers to the feasibility of a quantum time jump is the inciting incident that sets the team on the path to going back in time and saving the world.

7 Nebula

Screen Time: 16 Mins.

Nebula had had a complicated position in the MCU, dancing with the line between hero and villain for much of her previous films. Endgame, however, finally places her on the hero side of the war when it really matters.

She joins the Avengers in the time heist, being the only one who knows how to navigate the terrain in space. Going back to 2012 gives her the chance to make up for what she realizes were wrongdoings on her part, including making amends with her sister, Gamora.

6 Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff)

Screen Time: 16 Mins.

Black Widow had one of the most controversial roles in the film. After five years, she is the only Avenger who still believes that they will bring back all the people who were lost to the Snap. It’s certain that the team would never have been able to complete the mission if it hadn’t been for her persistence.

Her death marked the end of an era, both with the first loss of an original Avenger and also as one of the major events that would pave the way for a new generation of Marvel women to be depicted as heroes in the modern age of cinema in a way that Natasha’s time in the MCU didn’t allow her.

5 Hawkeye (Clint Barton)

Screen Time: 18 Mins.

Like Ant-Man, Hawkeye was also left out of the Infinity War lineup. The opening scene of Endgame, however, shows the moment he loses his wife and children to the Snap.

As a result, he dons the identity of Ronin, and the antihero murders his way through members of crime syndicates around the world until Natasha tracks him down to Japan and convinces him to join the Avengers in the time heist.

4 Bruce Banner (Hulk)

Screen Time: 20 Mins.

By the time the Avengers reunite to execute the time heist, Dr. Banner has figured out a way to combine the Hulk’s physical capabilities with his own mind.

He leads the experiments that allow the team to successfully travel through time, and he alone is responsible for obtaining the Time Stone. When they have gathered all the Stones from the different timelines, Banner is the one to wield the gauntlet and Snap everyone back into existence.

3 Thor

Screen Time: 21 Mins. 15 Sec.

Feeling it was his own mistakes that allowed Thanos to collect the Stones and carry out the Snap, Thor joins the Avengers in hunting down Thanos and, after learning the Stones had been destroyed, takes off the titan’s head. He takes to New Asgard, the home of the Asgardians who survived Ragnarok, and emerges five years later overweight, beer-soaked, and, according to Queen Frigga, in need of a salad.

When he returns to Earth with the Reality Stone and the Avengers bring back the lives that were lost, he passes the throne of Asgard onto Valkyrie and joins the Guardians of the Galaxy in their journeys.

2 Captain America (Steve Rogers)

Screen Time: 30 Mins. 45 Sec.

The iconic shield had been through a lot during Captain Rogers’ time in the MCU. It’s a symbol of the title of Captain America, which Steve both reclaims and passes on in Endgame. Following his return to the world’s battlefield after Civil War, he continues to do his part to help his community, leading a support group for people who had been affected by the Snap.

He answers the call back to the team when they find a way to undo Thanos’ actions, a mission that brings him back to 1970, where he catches a glimpse of Peggy Carter, who was, at that time, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. It’s this encounter that preludes Steve’s staying in the 1940s after returning the Stones to their timelines to live out a life with Peggy, giving him a happy—albeit slightly confusing—ending.

1 Iron Man (Tony Stark)

Screen Time: 34 Mins. 45 Sec.

Tony uses his five years of relative silence to build a life for himself, Pepper, and their daughter, Morgan, which was something he had been envisioning for them since years before. Although reluctant to leave them to re-embrace the hero life, he offers critical insight on the time travel process that allows the team to go back and gather the Stones.

It was fitting that the character who started the Infinity Saga also brought it to a close, tying up the end of his own story with it. After Iron Man had been such an integral part of the MCU, though, his sacrifice was not abrupt but rather properly marked the end of an era.

About The Author