Following Robert Downey Jr. (Rodagh), Chris Evans returns to the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). As the two leading actors who played the roles of Iron Man and Captain America, respectively, and led the ‘MCU Golden Age’, have been urgently brought in as saviors to save the falling MCU, the eyes of fans around the world who are looking forward to their return are somewhat mixed.

○Evans also makes a comeback following Rodagh

Major American entertainment media outlets such as Variety and Deadline reported that “Chris Evans will appear in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, scheduled to be released in 2026.” On the 7th, Marvel Studios officially announced that Iron Man, Rodaju, would be playing the world‘s strongest villain, Doomsday (Victor von Doom) in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, so both Rodaju and Evans, two of the top stars of the MCU, will be returning to the MCU through ‘Avengers: Doomsday’.

Rodaju and Evans left the MCU after ‘Avengers: Endgame’ in 2019, and Evans made a special appearance in ‘Deadpool and Wolverine’, released in July, as Johnny Storm, who he played in ‘Fantastic Four’ in 2005, rather than Captain America.

It is not known what role Evans will play in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, but Anthony Mackie, who plays Sam Wilson, is expected to return. As it has been confirmed that Evans will appear as the ‘2nd Captain America’, it seems unlikely that Evans will reprise the role of Captain America. Screen Rant even predicted, “He could end up playing a very evil new character, a ‘Hydra version’.”
○“Resurgence of prime time” vs. “Hindrance to development”

The successive returns of the original MCU stars are interpreted as ‘special measures’ by Marvel Studios, which has been embroiled in ‘crisis theories’ as most of the movies that came out after ‘Avengers: Endgame’have failed at the box office and have received harsh reviews from both critics and fans.’In reality, fans are welcoming the return of the two actors and are looking forward to a second heyday for Marvel. In particular, Screen Rant analyzed that “After ‘Avengers: Endgame,’ the MCU is also in decline, but Evans has also failed to produce a representative work,” and that his return to the MCU would be a “win-win strategy” for both parties.

However, some are responding negatively, saying that Marvel Studios is only relying on some popular actors to “put out urgent fires.” Movie media outlet Game Rant pointed out that “The MCU, which has continued to develop franchises with freshness and novelty, will lose trust in new characters as it clings to certain actors,” and “This does not help the MCU move forward in a beneficial direction at all.”


Reporter Seungmi Lee smlee@donga.com