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Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday

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"Avengers: Endgame" is set to smash box office records around the globe

Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

Marvel's "Avengers: Endgame” opens Thursday night on 4,600 U.S. and Canadian screens — the most for any movie ever, AP's Jake Coyle writes.

The impact: Many theaters will stay open for 24 hours. Seventeen AMC Theatres won’t close for 72 hours straight. Presales set records on Fandango and Atom.

Buzz: Disney said "Endgame" grossed $107 million on Wednesday in China, where it first opened — the most lucrative single day ever in Chinese theaters.

  • The current opening weekend record is held by the last "Avengers" movie — "Infinity War," last year's prelude to "Endgame."
  • Reviews — 97% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes — have been among the best for any Marvel movie.

The big picture: "Endgame" will give a much-needed jolt to the box office, which is 16% behind the pace of 2018.

  • L.A. Times review: Thrilling "Endgame" ... The latest movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe brings satisfying closure to the blockbuster 22-film series.

Go deeper: "Black Panther" makes history at the box office

Go deeper

Jonathan Swan
1 hour ago - Politics & Policy
Off the Rails

Episode 4: Trump turns on Barr

Photo illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios. Photos: Drew Angerer, Pool/Getty Images

Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term. Axios takes you inside the collapse of a president with a special series.

Episode 4: Trump torches what is arguably the most consequential relationship in his Cabinet.

Attorney General Bill Barr stood behind a chair in the private dining room next to the Oval Office, looming over Donald Trump. The president sat at the head of the table. It was Dec. 1, nearly a month after the election, and Barr had some sharp advice to get off his chest. The president's theories about a stolen election, Barr told Trump, were "bullshit."

Go deeper (6 min. read)Arrow
Rebecca Falconer
6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

In photos: Protests outside fortified capitols draw only small groups

Armed members of the far-right extremist group the Boogaloo Bois near the Michigan Capitol Building in Lansing on Jan. 17. About 20 protesters showed up, AP notes. Photo: Seth Herald/AFP via Getty Images

Small groups of protesters gathered outside fortified statehouses across the U.S. over the weekend ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration Wednesday.

The big picture: Some protests attracted armed members of far-right extremist groups but there were no reports of clashes, as had been feared. The National Guard and law enforcement outnumbered demonstrators, as security was heightened around the U.S. to avoid a repeat of the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riots, per AP.

See photos (<1 min. read)Arrow
Felix Salmon, author of Capital
8 hours ago - World

China's economy grows 6.5% in Q4 as country rebounds from coronavirus

A technician installs and checks service robots to be be used for food and medicine delivery in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, China, on Sunday. Photo: Hu Xuejun/VCG via Getty Images

China's economy grew at a 6.5% pace in the final quarter of 2020, the national statistics bureau announced Monday local time, topping off a year in which it grew in three of four quarters and by 2.3% in total.

Why it matters: No other major economy managed positive growth in 2020. Although the COVID-19 pandemic was first detected in China, the country got the virus under control and became one of the main positive drivers of the global economy even as the rest of the world was largely under lockdown.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow

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