Chris Evans talks about wife Alba Baptista and Marvel plans

Chris Evans says he wants ‘to act a little bit less,’ but will ‘never say never’ to Marvel

Chris Evans poses in glasses and a cream collared shirt against an orange background.

Sept. 19, 2023 11:47 AM PT

Captain America is hanging up his shield — for now.

In a new interview published Tuesday, Chris Evans discussed his plans (or lack thereof) to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and made rare comments about his relationship with fellow actor and reported wife, Alba Baptista.

Asked by GQ if he would ever appear in another MCU title, the “Captain America” and “Avengers” actor said, “Yeah, maybe.”

“I’ll never say never, just because it was such a wonderful experience,” Evans added.

“But I’m also very precious with it. It’s something that I am very proud of. And like I said, sometimes I can’t believe it even happened. And I wouldn’t want the black eye if it felt like a cash grab or if it didn’t live up to expectations or if it just felt like it wasn’t connected to that original thing. So, no time soon.”

(The GQ profile notes that its interview and photo shoot with Evans were completed prior to the actors’ strike.)

Evans last portrayed Steve Rogers — also known as Captain America — in 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” which saw his character pass the patriotic mantle along to his friend, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie).

Mackie has since succeeded Evans as Captain America in the Disney+ series “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.”

“[U]ltimately I really hope to just maybe act a little bit less in my life,” Evans told GQ.

“I have a lot of other interests. Look, by no means have I climbed any sort of a mountain in this field. I have no Oscars and I’m not lumped with other names that are at the top of the mountain in any way. But I also feel very satisfied.”

The “Knives Out” and “Ghosted” star also cited his relationship with Baptista as a reason for wanting to work less. Earlier this month, Evans, 42, reportedly wed Baptista, 26, at a private estate in Cape Cod, Mass.

The ceremony was reportedly attended by several of Evans’ Marvel co-stars, including Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) and Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow).

“I haven’t worked all year and I don’t plan to, which has been lovely,” Evans told GQ.

“My girlfriend that I’ve had for a while, when we began dating ... I was like: ‘Yeah, I do one movie a year. I try to never work now.’ And then, after like a few months of dating, boom, guess what? We’re living in Atlanta for a year. Get ready. And even when that year was happening, I was like, man, never again.”

Times news researcher Scott Wilson contributed to this report.