Published 10:26 IST, May 26th 2020
Chris Evans reveals how he overcame anxiety towards playing 'Captain America'
Chris Evans is well-known for his role as Steve Rogers /Captain America in the MCU. The actor revealed what helped him overcome his anxiety to play the role
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Chris Evans garnered worldwide fame for essaying Steve Rogers /Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). However, he has revealed on several occasions that he initially did not want to play the superhero character due to anxiety. Now the actor disclosed what made him overcome the stress he had. Read to know more.
How Chris Evans overcame his anxiety to play Captain America
In an interview with a leading daily, Chris Evans said that he was having second thoughts on his acting abilities as his movies did not work at the box office at that time and he was getting mini panic attacks on sets. During this time, the role of Steve Rogers aka Captain America was offered to him by Marvel Studios. It was when the studio was just launched with Iron Man in 2008. Evans was called for a screen test and if the makers liked him he would be locked for a nine-film deal.
Chris Evans thought that such commitment would push his nerves to the breaking point. He told his agent, “My suffering would be my own” as he rejected the role. Later, Marvel studios came back to him with a six-film deal reducing the commitment and offering him the part straight away. The actor consulted with Robert Downey Jr. who advised him not to make a major decision based on fear. In the end, Evans said yes for playing Captain America.
Chris Evans stated that it was the best decision he has ever made. He mentioned that he really owes that to Marvel Studios’ President, Kevin Feige for being persistent and helping him avoid making a “giant mistake." Being honest he said, all the things that he was fearing never really came to fruition. The Snowpiercer star said that he fell in love with Steve Rogers pretty quick.
Chris Evans added that it was nice having Thor star Chris Hemsworth around because he was going through it too. He meant that at the time, “Downey's Downey and Scarlett's Scarlett,” referring to RDJ and Scarlett Johansson’s fame. He added that Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner, at the time, were also crushing it. Evans mentioned that he and Hemsworth were very new and they also had the stand-alone films. He thinks that the two shared same anxiety, and at least that made it a little bit more comforting for each other.
Chris Evans portrayed Steve Rogers /Captain America seven times. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) being his debut as the character in the MCU. He further reprised the role in The Avengers (2012), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Avengers: Endgame (2019). Evans bid goodbye to the role in Endgame along with Robert Downey Jr. who also appeared in his last outing as Tony Stark /Iron Man after 10 years.
Updated 10:26 IST, May 26th 2020