Marvel's Chris Evans Would Return As Captain America Under A Few Conditions

While it appeared that Chris Evans' Steve Rogers handed the shield and mantle of Captain America over to Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson at the end of 2019's "Avengers: Endgame," it seems like the venerable actor is willing to suit up as the character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe again at some point.

Evans, of course, played one of the original members of Earth's Mightiest Heroes in the MCU, starting with "Captain America: The First Avenger" in 2011 and concluding, of course, with "Avengers: Endgame." In a September 2023 profile conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Evans told GQ that he would "maybe" play Cap again under the right circumstances.

"I'll never say never, just because it was such a wonderful experience," Evans said. "But I'm also very precious with it. It's something that I am very proud of. And like I said, sometimes I can't believe it even happened."

For the time being, Evans seems content basking in the warm memories of playing Captain America. Besides that, the last thing he wants is any blowback for returning to play the role again so quickly. "I wouldn't want the black eye if it felt like a cash grab or if it didn't live up to expectations or if it just felt like it wasn't connected to that original thing," the actor continued. "So, no time soon."

Chris Evans, of course, is among the few "Avengers" stars who have not suited up again since 2019's "Avengers: Endgame." As such, the past four years have given Evans time to digest what sort of role Captain America has played in his life.

In fact, in his introspective interview with GQ, Evans said he agrees with Quentin Tarantino's controversial MCU comments about the characters in Marvel's films being the stars, not the actors. And while different MCU stalwarts like Thor actor Chris Hemsworth, who said Martin Scorsese's and Tarantino's Marvel backlash is "super depressing," Evans, on the other hand, clearly has taken the "Pulp Fiction" director's criticisms in stride and understands his perspective.

"That was the beauty of working on Marvel films. You never really had to be front and center. Even in your own films sometimes," Evans explained. "Quentin Tarantino said it recently, and I was like, you know, he's right. The character is the star. You're there, but you don't feel the burden of it."

Evans has certainly kept himself very busy since his last Marvel gig. Following "Avengers: Endgame," Evans has starred in several major films and TV series, including "Knives Out," "The Gray Man," "Ghosted," and "Defending Jacob." Next up, Evans will star opposite Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in the action-adventure-comedy "Red One."

Meanwhile, Evans' MCU successor Anthony Mackie will take up the title role in the 2024 superhero adventure "Captain America: Brave New World."