Yesterday, Deadline broke the news that Marvel had found their man to helm the upcoming “Thunderbolts” movie in Jake Schreier. And since the Thunderbolts team in the comics has a lot of characters affiliated with Captain America, it’s easy to speculate who might end up in the movie’s group. Of course, it’s also enticing to wonder if, with so many of Cap’s friends and foes in the group, Chris Evans would return to reprise his role as Steve Rogers.
Well, don’t get your hopes up, Cap fans. In an interview with Phaze Zero to plug the upcoming “Lightyear,” Evans responded to the long-standing rumors that he’d one day return to the Steve Rogers role. And based on his answer, it’s safe to assume Evans has no plans to return to the MCU. “Okay, I don’t want to disappoint anybody, but I just don’t know, you know, it’s tough,” Evans said, “it was such a good run and I’m so happy with it, you know, it’s so precious to me.” Then Evans delivered this proposition: “it would have to be perfect,” as in, the idea to get him to return would have to blow him away.
The finale of “Avengers: Endgame” hasn’t kept fans from wondering if Evans would ever return to the role that made him a global superstar. Early last year, Deadline reported that Evans was nearing a deal to return as Captain American in a future Marvel project, but little came of that story. Then, in April 2021, Deadline announced that “Captain America 4” was in development with “The Falcon And The Winter Soldier” showrunner Malcolm Spellman on board. That movie will likely continue where the Disney+ series left off, and in the show, everyone talks about Rogers in the past tense, so all signs point to him being dead. Or is he?
From the sound of Evans’s interview, he’s not willing to mess with something as important to him as his time as Captain America. “It just would be scary to rattle something that is, again, so, so dear to me,” he continued in the interview, “That role means so much to me, so to revisit it would be a tall order.” Yes, but tall order doesn’t mean impossible. One would think if the money was right, and remember that the “Captain America” films made $2.2 billion at the global box office so they’re some of Marvel’s most lucrative properties, Evan would come back. It is Marvel, after all, so never say never.
In any case, Evans has had great success post-Marvel, with a lauded role in Rian Johnson‘s “Knives Out,” cameos in “Free Guy” and “Don’t Look Up,” and his voice work as everyone’s favorite toy ranger in “Lightyear.” He also stars in Anthony & Joe Russo‘s “The Gray Man” out on Netflix in July. He’ll also be in Dexter Fletcher‘s upcoming romantic actioner for AppleTV+, “Ghosted.” Whether or not he returns as Steve Rogers in “Captain America 4,” “Thunderbolts,” or another MCU project remains to be seen. Just don’t get your hopes up.