Everyone's favorite patriotic superhero is setting down his shield. That's right, Chris Evans is taking a break from acting. But don't worry, we'll still get to see him in not one, but two movies before that happens. Captain America: The Winter Soldier hits theaters on April 4th and then Avengers 2 will follow in May of 2015. Evans said of his mini-retirement, "I think when I'm done with this Marvel contract, I'll take a little break from acting." We don't blame him. His Marvel contract has been a doozy with him first appearing as the red, white, and blue hero in 2011 for Captain America, and then reprising the role in Avengers and Thor 2: The Dark World.
Evans isn't the only Avenger to be contracted into so many movies. In an effort to keep continuity (and dollars) flowing, Marvel had all of their actors sign five-film contracts to be redeemed whenever the studio feel necessary. That's likely how Evans landed in the Thor 2 film despite it being mostly about Thor and Loki.
Other Marvel actors still in contract are Tom Hiddleston who plays Loki. He's cashed in three of his Marvel movies with two still left up in the air. He's not in Avengers 2, but can be used in any of their other movies going forward. He said of his contract:
I signed to play Loki in five more Marvel movies, but they were unspecified. So, if there will be more movies or not remains to be seen, but I like the idea of Loki turning up in the shadows when people least expect him."
Robert Downey Jr. who plays Iron Man, was only set to appear in Avengers 2 before his contract ran out, but has already signed back on for Avengers 3. Chris Hemsworth, who plays Thor, said he has two more Avengers films and one more Thor film left on his contract. But as evidenced by Downey's resigning and Hemsworth saying "If people wanted to see more, I’d be happy to keep going. I love these stories and I love this character," it's clear these actors don't mind essentially being kidnapped by the franchise.
Even for Chris Evans it seems his break from acting has no animosity behind it. He said he'd be kicking himself if he didn't sign on and has learned how to deal with the stresses that being such an iconic hero has brought.
You’ve got to respect the fact that when the movie comes out, there’s going to be a surge. And there’s going to be some changes, but then it’s going to go away. It’s going to die back down, just like any type of actor. When a movie comes out, you get a little bit more of a spotlight on it. And then, when it goes away… So you can monitor it ... It’s not like once these movies are out, your life is forfeit, and you can’t have any more control. So you’ve just got to take those periods of time in stride, and it will pass. And it will die down eventually, and things will go back to a relative level of normalcy.
We're glad Evans isn't staging a huge Hollywood walk-out when Avengers 2 is finished, and rather just taking a well-deserved break from the public spotlight for a little while before his next acting project. But though we'll miss Evans in the Marvel universe, at least we can count on Tom Hiddleston and his two unspecified Marvel projects in the future.
