Chris Evans Says He's Done Playing Captain America After Avengers 4

It definitely sounds like Chris Evans is ready to hang up his shield.

The actor who has played Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2011 has already hinted that he'll walk away from the franchise when his contract is fulfilled after next year's Avengers 4. But in a new interview with the New York Times, Evans made it pretty clear that's still the plan.

"You want to get off the train before they push you off," he said. According to the report, Evans "has no plans to return to the franchise" and he "expects that planned reshoots in the fall [for Avengers 4] will mark the end of his tenure in the familiar red, white and blue super suit."

Nothing is completely official yet, but Evans' potential departure isn't surprising. Avengers 4 will mark his seventh turn as Captain America, and that doesn't include cameos in Thor: The Dark World, Ant-Man and Spider-Man: Homecoming. He's essentially lived as the character for the past seven or eight years, and he's had to remain in top physical shape the entire time. 

"When you're creeping on 36, working out is a little bit harder," he told USA Today last year.

Evans might not be the only Avenger to leave in the near future. Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), and Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) are all about to wrap up their current contracts as well. 

Of course, the folks at Marvel have known this day was coming for a long time and that's why the events of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4 will bring big changes to the MCU. Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige told Vanity Fair: "There will be two distinct periods. Everything before Avengers 4 and everything after. I know it will not be in ways people are expecting."

As for Captain America, there's always a chance that an existing MCU character could assume the mantle. In the comics, both Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Falcon (Anthony Mackie) have taken over as Captain America at different points. But it's possible that Marvel will simply move on and let someone like Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) and Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) become the unspoken center of the universe. 

For now, we know Evans will make at least two more appearances in the MCU and we'll see him next when Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on April 27.