Chris Evans Speaks Out on Leaving Marvel and Joining Rian Johnson’s Knives Out

Former Marvel star Chris Evans says the transition from back-to-back group ensembles in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame to whodunnit murder mystery Knives Out was “pretty seamless.”

“It is kind of a group mentality, so you’re still kind of collaborating with a lot of people, and it is kind of, strangely enough, a similar family dynamic,” Evans told The Hollywood Reporter. “A different character — in the Marvel movies I play a guy who’s a little more taciturn, a little more selfless — and in this movie, I play a guy that’s a little more vile.”

Evans’ valiant and strait-laced Captain America couldn’t be more different from his smarmy, smart-mouthed Ransom Drysdale in Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi followup, but “the way you come to set every day is still pretty similar.”

“And to be honest, it was just as fun,” Evans said. “Everyone on this set, everyone’s just here to have a good time and everyone loves what they do. It’s a real blessing.”

Endgame signaled the end of Evans’ eight-year run as the star spangled Avenger, who was ushered off the stage with 11-year Iron Man veteran Robert Downey Jr. According to directors Anthony and Joe Russo, who steered Evans four times across two Captain America movies and two Avengers movies, the star has “emotionally moved on” from Steve Rogers and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

“Chris is a very emotional person,” Joe Russo told the Happy Sad Confused podcast in May when asked if Evans could return. “I think, maybe it’s evident if you follow him on Twitter — because he does put his heart into what he says — but I feel like he has to close the door on things and emotionally move onto the next thing.”

“There are no plans,” Anthony said. Added Joe, “I think for now he’s emotionally moved on, yes.”

Downey has since said it was time for the two stars to “get off the bus.”

“We had to get off. We opted to, and knew it was part of the job to get off the bus while it rolled on to other destinations,” Downey said in a recent issue of Disney twenty-three magazine. “There’s something very sobering about it. I’m glad he and I will be there to welcome others as they retire their jerseys.”

Also starring Daniel Craig, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Ana de Armas, Michael Shannon, Jaeden Martell, Jamie Lee Curtis and Christopher Plummer, Knives Out releases November 27.