Chris Evans’ shocking yet welcome return to the MCU was a highlight of ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, but I’m glad Evans’ comments about reprising the role were summarily debunked just months later. Chris Evans’ return as Johnny Storm is one of the earliest cameos in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, but also one of its most effective, as the impact of Steve Rogers’ departure from the MCU still lingered five years later. ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool shared the suspicions of many when Chris Evans unveiled his face in the Void, only to be rug-pulled by the reveal that he was Fox’s Johnny Storm.
While this vindicated rumors that Evans would be reprising this role in the lead-up to ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine‘s release, it was still a shock to see the actor most closely ᴀssociated with the MCU’s flagship character, Captain America, portraying an entirely different one in the same cinematic universe. For all the questions this might have raised about multiversal variants, his arrival made me concerned that this would be the last we’d ever see of Chris Evans in the MCU, despite suspicions that the multiverse would cater to one last appearance from Cap.
Chris Evans’ Comments About His ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine Return Suggested It Was The Only Way He’d Ever Return To The MCU
Chris Evans Suggested That Ryan Reynolds Was The Only Person He’d Say “Yes” To
While he had worked hard to keep his cameo a secret in the run-up to ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, Chris Evans was able to reflect on his celebrated role in the movie just two days after its release. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly in July, Evans revealed that Ryan Reynolds texted him with a proposal to reprise “something from 20 years ago,” to which Evans responded “Oh my God! Of course.” He then clarified that his “buddy” Ryan Reynolds might have been the only person for whom he would have returned to the MCU. His full quote is as follows:
“I was so excited. Ryan’s a buddy. He just sH๏τ me a text saying, ‘Listen, might be a long sH๏τ, but would you have any interest in reprising something from 20 years ago?’ I said, ‘Oh my God! Of course.’
Honestly, Ryan might be the only guy that I would’ve done it for because he’s just got the Midas touch. His self-awareness makes him almost invincible. He makes the joke before the audience gets a chance to make the joke, so if you’re going to revisit a character, and you have to find a way to make it work, Ryan’s humor makes just about everything work, so you feel an automatic sense of safety.”
Considering Chris Evans seemed prepared to only return to a Marvel role from years ago if Ryan Reynolds was facilitating, this was not a positive prognosis for his potential return as Captain America. Evans’ comments came just one day before the stunning reveal that Robert Downey Jr. would be portraying Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, meaning it was still eminently plausible that both of the foremost actors in the MCU were definitively finished with the franchise. Thankfully, Evans’ ᴀssertion would be debunked just five months later with the reveal that he would also be returning in Avengers: Doomsday.
Chris Evans Returning For An Avengers Movie Feels A More Poignant Return Than ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine
The Avengers Define Chris Evans’ MCU Tenure
The announcement that Evans would be returning in an Avengers movie feels far more befitting than his ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine cameo. Chris Evans’ importance to the MCU is tantamount to Robert Downey Jr.’s. His apparent departure in Avengers: Endgame was the perfect conclusion to Steve Rogers’ story, as we watched the hero who had spent his entire career prioritizing everyone above himself finally take advantage of an opportunity to pursue his own (and Peggy’s) happiness. A reprisal of the role in an Avengers movie, therefore, could provide myriad opportunities.
The prevailing theory is that he’ll embody the role of a villainous Steve Rogers – likely Hydra Supreme – the impact of which deserves an Avengers-level narrative as he faces the friends and colleagues he has led in every Avengers movie since then.
The details of Chris Evans’ role in Avengers: Doomsday are forthcoming, but it’s safe to say that it will be heartrending. The prevailing theory is that he’ll embody the role of a villainous Steve Rogers – likely Hydra Supreme – the impact of which deserves an Avengers-level narrative as he faces the friends and colleagues he has led in every Avengers movie since then. Whatever the case, I think the best recourse for the MCU is to have Evans return as a Steve Rogers variant rather than in yet another role following his largely humorous reprisal in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine.
I’m Glad Chris Evans Returned For ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, But I’m Also Glad It Wasn’t His Final MCU Appearance
The End Of Chris Evans’ MCU Career Shouldn’t Be A Punchline
I’m sure I wasn’t alone in hoping that Avengers: Endgame wouldn’t be the last we’d see of Chris Evans – the loss of Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark was hard enough, after all. At the same time, I’m sure I wasn’t alone in suspecting that the MCU might bring back variants of departed heroes during the climax of the Multiverse Saga. That’s why Evans’ cameo in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, as incredible as it was, was slightly concerning as it suggested the MCU was cashing in on the implications of the multiverse with Chris Evans for what was essentially a joke.
A second reappearance from the celebrated MCU actor is exactly what I think we need. While there is a general air of trepidation surrounding the return of both Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr., two of the MCU’s most bankable actors, I feel like ending Chris Evans’ MCU tenure on an irreverent note in ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine would feel too out of pocket. Instead, I think that it was always the plan to have Evans return in Avengers: Doomsday, and I can’t wait to see how it will build upon his apparent departure in Avengers: Endgame.
Upcoming MCU Movies
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Captain America: Brave New World
- Release Date
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February 14, 2025
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Thunderbolts*
- Release Date
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May 2, 2025
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The Fantastic Four: First Steps
- Release Date
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July 25, 2025
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Avengers: Doomsday (2026)
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Spider-Man Homecoming 4
- Release Date
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July 24, 2026
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Avengers: Secret Wars
- Release Date
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May 7, 2027
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Source: Entertainment Weekly
