How Marvel convinced him to play the iconic superhero despite his fears of baldness and fame

Getting a role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is a dream for many actors but requires much commitment. Actors appear in multiple projects and have contracts to play a character for several years. The original Avengers gang made numerous appearances, comprising Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, and Jeremy Renner. Over time, their looks changed, which was reflected on the screen. But that’s natural. However, Evans had his fears before taking on Captain America’s part in the MCU.

Chris Evans stepped into the role of Steve Rogers in Marvel with 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger. He has also appeared in another Marvel character, Johnny Storm, aka Human Torch, in the Fantastic Four franchise. After Avengers: Endgame, he retired from the MCU role; however, there has been speculation about his return to Secret Wars. Evans was also in the news for his marriage with Portuguese actress Alba Baptista; his Marvel colleagues attended his low-key wedding last year.

Why he initially rejected the offer to play the star-spangled hero

Chris Evans has appeared in eleven Marvel films over the years. Imagining anyone else in Captain America’s role is hard for the fans. However, his legacy is being carried on by Anthony Mackie, who was originally the Falcon in the MCU. When Marvel approached him for the superhero role for the first time, he declined because of the fame associated with playing the character. Once, in his interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he said, “My suffering would be my own.”

Overwhelming fame and popularity were not the only reasons Chris Evans declined the role of Captain America. He was also afraid of going bald and was squeamish about accepting the part. As per Contact Music, he once told E! News, “I have no problem saying this, but I’m losing my hair.”

He explained, “The fear is this [role] can span 10 years, so I can be doing this character until I’m 40. I’m supposed to be like this superior human. He can’t be balding. How horrible would it be if this superior man has male pattern baldness?”

How he changed his mind and embraced the role

Marvel was persistent about getting Chris Evans for the part and kept nudging him to reconsider his decision. He went to Robert Downey Jr, aka Iron Man, for advice, and eventually, he gave in and went for it. He said, “It was the best decision I’ve ever made, and I really owe that to Kevin Feige for being persistent and helping me avoid making a giant mistake.”

“To be honest, all the things that I was fearing never really came to fruition,” Evans added. He told GQ, “I love playing that role. I feel connected to it in a way that when you revisit a character so many times, you can’t help but try to absorb some of their traits and measure yourself against them.”

Chris Evans earned a great fortune for his role, from making $300K for the first Captain America movie to getting $15 million for Avengers: Endgame; he is one of Hollywood’s most popular and loved actors.

On the professional front, he was last seen in Ghosted with Ana de Armas. It was released in 2023, but the film received poor reviews.