Chris Evans 'Very Quickly' Missed Playing Captain America After His Time In The MCU Ended

While enjoying his new title of People's "Sexiest Man Alive," Chris Evans briefly waxed nostalgic about his time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Per Screen Rant, the 41-year-old actor was first offered the role in 2010, and would go on to play the character in over 10 films from 2011's "Captain America: The First Avenger" to 2019's "Avengers: Endgame." "I think when the movies end you're very happy to have a break," he told People, "But very quickly, you miss it. I miss it now," (via People).

Speculation that the actor would leave the MCU began as soon as he announced wrapping "Endgame." As the culmination of Marvel Studios' decade-long Infinity Saga, it was expected that at least a couple of the founding Avengers would take their final bow. As Evans said at the time: "You want to get off the train before they push you off," (via CNN).

Robert Downey Jr. left with Evans in "Endgame," while Scarlett Johansson seemingly ended her run after her solo follow-up, 2020's "Black Widow." Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, and Jeremy Renner have not indicated when their respective runs will wrap up. But before you get too excited about this statement — which fans might interpret as an indication of Evans' interest in returning to the role of Steve Rogers in the future — the actor wants people to temper their expectations.

For fans hoping that Evans' appreciation for his MCU days will instigate his return to the role of Captain America, they shouldn't hold their breath. Shortly after it was announced that a fourth franchise film — now titled "Captain America: New World Order" — was in development, The Hollywood Reporter theorized that it could feature both Evans and former Falcon, Anthony Mackie. "Having stacked casts in solo outings is a key Marvel ingredient at this point," they tweeted in July of this year. Evans' response to the tweet was simple and clear: "Sam Wilson is Captain America."

Of course, just because Sam now carries the star-spangled shield doesn't mean Steve couldn't still show up. In the comics, Sam becomes Captain America after Steve is forcibly returned to his natural age, allowing him to play a supporting role in the series instead. Though this could theoretically play out in the film, the stars have doused water on such theories. Mackie recently brushed off the idea of Evans coming back to the universe, telling E! News "Marvel is not even in his radius. He's so far gone. He's enjoying life. He's like an old retired dude."

Evans himself expressed a lack of desire to play the role again when MTV asked if he would return to the MCU as an entirely different Marvel character. "Cap is so precious to me," he told the outlet, "I almost don't wanna disrupt what a beautiful experience that was...," (via NME). What Marvel character would Evans reprise? The Human Torch, of course. "I would love it," he said of reviving the character, which he played in 2005's "Fantastic Four" pre-MCU. "Johnny Storm, I feel like he didn't really get his day... I loved that role and, you know, who knows?"