Esquire brings word that Captain America himself, Chris Evans, may bow out of the MCU following Avengers: Infinity War and its as-yet-untitled sequel.
First spotted by Collider, the report simply highlights that by the time Avengers 4 crashes into theaters in 2019, Evans will have fulfilled his current Marvel contract. Of course, there’s always a chance he and the Powers That Be over at Marvel will negotiate some form of extension, similar to how the studio locked down Robert Downey Jr. for Spider-Man: Homecoming and beyond.
As Captain America: Civil War proved, both Downey Jr. and Chris Evans are considered two bankable pillars of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, going by this recent Esquire profile, it would seem that the latter actor is ready to hang up the shield once and for all.
It’s by no means set in stone, of course, but assuming Chris Evans does part ways with Cap, it opens up some intriguing possibilities. For one, Marvel could very well take cues from the comics and allow Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) to supplant Evans in the title role. It’s an idea that has been floated before, and considering Chris Evans is now beginning to explore other creative avenues – his feature debut, 2015’s Before We Go, has evidently sparked an interest in directing – we wouldn’t be all that surprised to learn that Evans is ready to pass the buck, as it were.
Here’s an extract from that aforementioned Esquire piece:
Settling in on the couch, he groans. Evans explains that he’s hurting all over because he just started his workout routine the day before to get in shape for the next two Captain America films. The movies will be shot back to back beginning in April. After that, no more red-white-and-blue costume for the thirty-five-year-old. He will have fulfilled his contract.
Acting as the two-part culmination of everything that’s come before, Avengers: Infinity War is on course to light up theaters in May of 2018. It’ll be followed by the fourth Avengers movie exactly one year later.
