'Lightyear' star Chris Evans says 'easier to sell' reprising Johnny Storm than return as Captain America
Chris Evans may have voiced Buzz Lightyear in the latest Pixar release 'Lightyear', but much of the chatter has been around his rumored return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) as Steve Rogers/Captain America. In a recent interview with MTV, the actor opened up about a possible return as a superhero. He leaned more towards playing a different character, one he had essayed before.
In the interview, Evans opined that he would love to play Johnny Storm. The superhero was played by Evans in 'Fantastic Four' well before he suited up as Captain America and went on to star in a trilogy, as well as four Avengers installments. While Cap had his ending in 'Avengers: Endgame', he was still referenced in the Phase 4 content that followed with 'Ms Marvel' being the latest. Evans was asked about a possible return to the MCU and the actor suggested that he was more open to reprising his role as the human torch rather than picking up the shield again.
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"I would love it," Evans remarked. "That would actually be an easier sell to me than coming back as Cap." He also added that Rogers was a role that was close to his heart. "Cap is so precious to me and I almost don’t want to disrupt what a beautiful experience that was. But Johnny Storm, I feel like he didn’t really get his day. That was before Marvel really found its footing. So I loved that role, and, you know, who knows…” he concluded.
Johnny Storm was later portrayed by Michael B Jordan in the 'Fantastic Four' reboot that also starred Miles Teller, Kate Mara, and Jamie Bell in starring roles. The first couple of movies had Evans play Johnny alongside Ioan Gruffudd. Jessica Alba and Michael Chiklis. The movies are not considered to be part of the MCU, however, Marvel Studios did eventually claim the film rights of the characters after Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox.
Earlier in an interview, Evans echoed a similar sentiment. Talking to comicbook, he said it would be "a tall order" to play Cap again. "I don’t want to disappoint anybody, but it’s tough to… It was such a good run, and I’m so happy with it,” Evans said. “It’s so precious to me. It would have to be perfect. It just would be scary to rattle something that is, again, so, so dear to me. That role means so much to me. So, to revisit it, it would be a tall order." For now, there is no ruling out the possibility that he wouldn't be black as the star-spangled man with a plan.
As far as his latest venture 'Lightyear' goes, the reviews were fairly positive. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a healthy 77% with the critic's consensus reading, "Lightyear settles for being a rather conventional origin story instead of reaching for the stars, but this gorgeously animated adventure ably accomplishes its mission of straightforward fun." He will next be seen in Netflix's 'The Grayman' alongside Ryan Gosling and Ana de Armas.
