What Chris Evans Would Look Like As Hydra's Captain America In The MCU

For nearly a decade, Chris Evans' interpretation of Captain America stood as one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's tentpole figures. As a leading character in both his own trilogy as well as the four Avengers films, fans across the globe came to adore this incarnation of the Star-Spangled Man. Of course, this made saying goodbye to this larger-than-life hero and the talented actor behind him all the more difficult in 2019's Avengers: Endgame, where he traveled back in time to live the life he'd always wanted with his true love, Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell). Although, moviegoers may not have seen the last of this version of Cap on the big screen. 

In January of 2021, rumors began to circulate from various news outlets that Evans is in talks to return to the MCU for another round as his red, white, and blue alter-ego. However, this time around, he might switch teams and join up with the bad guys for the upcoming MCU sequel, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (via Express). As the title suggests, the movie will focus heavily on Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Stephen Strange voyaging to alternate realities, perhaps leading him to a villainous take on Steve Rogers who has aligned with the evil HYDRA organization. Here's how this sinister Captain America could look.

With this potential plot thread in mind, Instagram user @artoftimetravel mocked up what Steve Rogers as a HYDRA agent could look like. In the edit, Chris Evans is dressed in a black leather trench coat complete with HYDRA emblems on each shoulder, similar to Hugo Weaving's Red Skull — Captain America's arch-nemesis. He's also shown standing in front of a flag with the same logo with legions of ruthless HYDRA soldiers brandishing their weapons of war. Overall, the picture invokes a sense of power and strength, honing in on the hallmarks of HYDRA's desired image throughout their time in the MCU.

Should HYDRA's Captain America come to fruition on the big screen, it'll be interesting to see how Marvel Studios handles his characterization. Such a story already exists in Marvel Comics' deep catalog through the controversial 2017 storyline, Secret Empire. In this tale, Steve Rogers reveals his allegiance to HYDRA, turning his back on the United States and taking up the mantle of HYDRA Supreme. Of course, as comic books tend to do, the evil Cap and his faction received their comeuppance at the hands of the heroes, led by the real Captain America. It's unlikely he'll get this much development in the span of a 2-hour movie about a totally different Marvel character, but, if MCU ever has time to spotlight HYDRA's Cap, there are plenty of stories to tell.