No Sleep 'Til Endgame: This Avengers Marathon Is In Its Third Day At The El Capitan

We're in the endgame now. For the fans at the El Capitan Theatre's Avengers: Endgame marathon, they've been in it since Tuesday morning.

A room full of those with a deep love for Marvel movies and not afraid of sitting in somewhat uncomfortable seats for nearly three days straight started their marathon at 9 a.m. Tuesday. For these fans, it's worth whatever it takes.

Tickets for Endgame have been a hot commodity. Fan Chris Colman said that he'd been up at 5 a.m. every day starting March 2 watching for when tickets would go on sale. Jason Burrows, a Seattle radio DJ, flew in for the marathon.

"It's been a huge whirlwind of movies, and breaks, and snacks, and more movies, and napping here and there," Burrows said.

Choices have to be made when it comes to which movies you stay awake for and which ones allow you a few moments of shut-eye in the middle of hundreds of other fans.

Burrows said he napped through Thor: The Dark World and a little of Guardians of the Galaxy, but he was going fairly strong -- until last night.

"I tried so hard to stay up during Spider-Man, Black Panther, and Ragnarok, but I slept through most of those too," Burrows said.

Meanwhile, Colman slept through Guardians of the Galaxy, skipped Ant-Man to get something to eat and take a break, and slept through Black Panther before waking up in the middle of Infinity War.

"Which is a little blasphemous," Colman said. "When you fall asleep during Black Panther, and then you wake up and somehow Tony Stark is in the movie, you know something's probably really wrong."

No reports were available on how many of the audience members were loud snorers.

Among the rewards for being part of this brave crew is guest appearances by members of the Marvel Cinematic Universe introducing some of the movies, including Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill), Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes), and Sean Gunn (motion capture for Rocket and Groot, plus Kraglin Obfonteri) so far.

"We're expecting, we're hoping for more as the day progress today -- fingers crossed," Burrows said.

It's Burrows' third time flying down for one of these marathons. He did it before for Avengers: Age of Ultron and Infinity War.

"But those were only 12-movie marathons," Burrows said. "I'm pretty sure, once we get through Captain Marvel, and we're prepping for Endgame, I think everyone is just going to light up."

Helping to keep spirits high, the El Capitan had a representative from the YMCA out each morning to lead the audience in some stretches, calisthenics, and even a camp song.

"It's a good way to get up and move around, and make sure that you're not going to get deep-vein thrombosis from sitting in a seat for [this many] hours," Burrows said.

Everyone also gets a swag kit, featuring everything from character popcorn tins to blankets -- and a "hygiene kit" that includes toothbrush, toothpaste, and some tissues for whatever heartbreak moments happen in Endgame.

The experience is a payoff to years of fandom for both Burrows and Colman.

"I was 6 years old when I first saw Iron Man, and I saw it in 2009" Colman said. "Avengers was my first MCU movie that I ever saw in theaters, and when I saw that, it kind of cemented everything in for me, where I became a fan. And the movies got me into comics, and so I just felt like, well, I had to come and pay respect."

He added that he'd made friends with his seatmates and developed a sense of camaraderie with the crowd. He was also moved by how trustworthy everyone else was, letting him feel comfortable leaving his bag at his seat in a room of hundreds of strangers.

"I love these movies, so it's really great to just get to watch them all in a row, and be here with a bunch of people who like them as much as I do," Burrows said.

Avengers: Endgame opens Thursday night, as do fans' tear ducts.