Leave it to ol’ Steve Rogers to say, “No, I don’t think I will.” Initial reports suggested that Chris Evans would join Robert Downey Jr. and the Russo Brothers for Avengers: Doomsday. But in a new conversation with Esquire, Anthony Mackie stated that Evans downplayed those rumors. “He goes, ‘Oh, you know, I’m happily retired,’” Mackie explained, a comment that Esquire later confirmed with Evans himself, getting a word-for-word response: “Yeah, no—happily retired.”
Between the awkward way of stating his intentions, and the long history of Marvel actors such as Andrew Garfield giving misleading statements about their upcoming MCU projects, we have more than enough reason to doubt Evans’s claims.
Still, if Evans doesn’t don the red, white, and blue again for Avengers: Doomsday, it may not be so bad. In fact, the absence of Steve Rogers as Captain America may be the best thing for the movie.
The Continuing Adventures of Captain America
The obvious main reason we don’t need Steve Rogers to suit up for Avengers: Doomsday is because we already have a Captain America in the MCU. The elderly Steve absolutely made the right choice when he handed the shield to Sam Wilson in Endgame.
Sam has the training and the compassion necessary to be the Sentinel of Liberty, even if we haven’t really had much of a chance to see him use those skills as Cap. For some reason, the series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier sees Sam trying to give away the shield more than it puts him in the costume and his first movie as Cap doesn’t release for a few more weeks. At this point, Marvel hasn’t given Sam a shot to do his take on Captain America, certainly not as the leader of the Avengers.
To bring back Steve Rogers as Captain America now, before Sam can find his footing as the leader of Marvel’s heroes, would completely undercut him in the public eye. It would reduce Sam to Cap’s sidekick once again. Sure, it was cute when Steve kept lapping him on his left in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, but Sam’s more than earned the right to take Cap in a new direction.
Speaking of stopping new directions, the return of Chris Evans as Cap would feel like a tired retread. Spider-Man: No Way Home and Deadpool & Wolverine made a ton of money by carting out old favorites (including Evans but as the Human Torch), but that trick only works a couple of times. Soon, the glow of nostalgia will fade and the entire project will stink of a desperate cash grab. After all, Steve Rogers ended his story on a happy note just six short years ago, in a manner vastly different than the ignominious end of the Fox X-Men and Sony Spider-Man franchises.
However, as Deadpool & Wolverine reminded us, Evans doesn’t have to be Captain America to be in a Marvel movie.
Cap Gone Bad, Cap Gone Good, or No Cap At All?
At this point, we still don’t have any idea about the plot to Avengers: Doomsday. We know that it will set up the next movie Avengers: Secret Wars, which will likely adapt the comic book story about Doctor Doom “saving” the multiverse by recreating the universe in his image. Outside of that, we also know that it will feature Robert Downey Jr. as Victor Von Doom, a strange bit of casting that raises more questions than answers.
However, the fact that a beloved Marvel star, one who exited the franchise at the same time as Evans, is coming back in a very different form suggests that Evans has options beyond Captain America when he does inevitably return to the MCU.
As you might guess, there are lots of evil Steve Rogers variants out there, including the Lovecraftian version from the Cancerverse and the vampire Captain America who was turned by Baron Blood. But the most famous version is Hydra Supreme, an alternate Steve Rogers who served for years as a sleeper agent, waiting until he had gained the world’s trust as Captain America and then revealing his true identity, turning the country into a police state. That story ends with Sam’s Captain America recovering the true Steve Rogers, which would work in the MCU, allowing Sam to stay in focus while Marvel also expands on the evil variant concept introduced by RDJ’s Doom.
If Marvel wanted to cast Rogers as a baddie who looks like Steve but isn’t, they have some options. After Rogers disappeared in World War II in the comics, jingoistic history buff William Burnside forced the government to let him become the next Captain America, and even got surgery and changed his name to be Steve Rogers (if this sounds like a retcon to explain away bad Captain America stories, that’s because it is). When the real Steve returned, Burnside openly embraced his racism and became the Grand Director, a KKK version of Steve Rogers.
“Captain America but in the Klan” sounds way too risky for Disney (and not exactly the message of hope this country needs right now), so they may instead go with casting Evans as Steve Rogers in another superhero identity. Over the years, Rogers has become various different heroes, including the Captain, Ronin (the identity Hawkeye adopts in Endgame), and Nomad, the last of which included a yellow cape on which Rogers immediately tripped.
If Evans wanted to stay in his old age form from Endgame, Marvel could adapt Steve Rogers: Super Soldier. When Rogers lost the Super Soldier Serum in a battle with a villain, he immediately reverted to old age. SHIELD was able to restore the serum and decrease the aging, but not all the way. During this period, Steve operated as Super Soldier, an older, grouchier, and frankly less trustworthy version of the guy we know and love.
Sometimes, No Chris is Best
Comic book fans would certainly have fun seeing Evans play Grand Director, Super Soldier, or other variations. Anyone whose read more than two Marvel comic books has seen their favorite characters reimagined in outrageous ways. However, it’s hard to believe that the general viewing public would be quite so tolerant of the MCU throwing away a favorite in favor of a weird alternate. Yes, movies such as Deadpool & Wolverine have gotten away with multiversal stories, but it feels like the larger public will get tired of the concept at any second. They’ll just want to see Chris Evans as Steve Rogers as Captain America again.
So the best solution is probably the simplest: do Avengers: Doomsday without Chris Evans at all. The Avengers have always had a rotating line-up and the MCU has plenty of heroes worth following. Even better, they have another charismatic actor and a compelling character ready to prove his worth as Captain America.
Evans did a great job bringing to life the fundamental goodness of Steve Rogers. But his fight in the MCU is over. It’s time to let someone else carry the load. Because even Cap would agree that if the Dream was all about one man, then the Dream isn’t worth fighting for.
Avengers: Doomsday releases on May 1, 2026.
The post Avengers: Doomsday Doesn’t Need Chris Evans as Captain America appeared first on Den of Geek.
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