Though many a fan took issue with the director’s criticism, franchise star Chris Evans has voiced support for Quentin Tarantino’s recent observation that it is the studio’s roster of characters, not the actors themselves, who are the actual stars of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
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The Captain America actor expressed his thoughts on the topic while discussing his personal role preferences with GQ’s Zach Baron.
Speaking with the magazine as the subject of their October issue cover profile, Evans explained that, in his perfect world, “I would run away from the leading man role every time if I could.”
“Someone like Robert Downey Jr. walks in the room and he owns the oxygen,” the Scott Pilgrim vs. the World star told Baron. “He’s just such a presence, such a force. Magnetic in every way. Let him be the lead. Let him have the mic, let him say the lines. Whatever needs to be said. That’s fine.”
“Because as an actor, there’s two sides to the profession, isn’t there?,” he further opined. “There’s the thing you do on set and then the things you do after. And it’s that after stuff that I still struggle with. And it’s that after stuff that some people are just phenomenal at and some people are just born to do it.”
To this, Evans confidently asserted, “I say: Let’em. I’m not trying to fit into that box.”
“So if a good supporting role comes along, I’m jumping at it,” said the Avengers quadrilogy lead. “Just like Knives Out. I’m happy to be in an ensemble. I don’t need to carve out some sort of leading man niche for myself.”
Staying on the topic but deviating slightly, Evans then turned his thoughts to his time as Steve Rogers, recalling to Baron, “That was the beauty of working on Marvel films. You never really had to be front and center. Even in your own films sometimes.”
“Quentin Tarantino said [this idea] recently,” he then noted, making reference to the Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood director’s November 2022 appearance on comedic duo Tom Segura and Bert Kreischer’s 2 Bears, 1 Cave podcast. “And I was like, you know, he’s right. The character is the star. You’re there, but you don’t feel the burden of it.”
During his said appearance on the podcast, Tarantino spoke with his hosts about the current state of Hollywood and shared his belief that, “Part of the Marvel-ization of Hollywood is… you have all these actors who have become famous playing these characters. But they’re not movie stars.”
“Right?” he continued to Segura and Kreischer. “Captain America is the star. Or Thor is the star. I mean, I’m not the first person to say that. I think that’s been said a zillion times, you know, but, you know, but it’s like, you know, it’s these franchise characters that become a star.”
Notably, Evans’ assessment was met with pushback from the head of Marvel Studios himself, Kevin Feige.
Offering his own comment to Baron, Feige argued, “I think it’s something he was telling himself, and I think it’s something many of the Avengers, including Robert, would tell themselves, which actually was very helpful to the process. But in certain cases, including Chris’s, it’s not entirely true.”
