Chris Evans retired from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and playing Captain America in 2019, butRed Oneis making his return appear more likely. After landing the life-changing role of Steve Rogers and making his MCU debut in 2011, he enjoyed an acclaimed run as the Marvel icon for eight years, culminating withAvengers: Endgame’s ending. The conclusion of Steve’s story was done so that Evans would be freed up to explore more projects beyond the sprawling franchise, which demanded much of his time in the prior decade.
This gave the actor endless possibilities and potential to join exciting projects of all scales. On the surface,Evans doing a Christmas action movie with The Rock sounded great.Red Onewas even thought to be a potential massive hit for him, possibly even a franchise starter away from the MCU. That becomes tougher to imagine withRed One’s Rotten Tomatoes scoredebuting at 32% with critics and how the film continues a rough patch for Evans. Instead of being a new franchise to help replace the MCU, it might be what ultimately helps bring him back as Captain America.
Red One Is Another Rotten Movie For Evans
The harsh reality for Chris Evans is that he has had little luck and success away from the MCU since leaving.Red One’s Rotten Tomatoes score is the latest example of a disappointing trend for the actor in the last five years.Evans has now starred in four consecutive movies that received Rotten scoresfrom critics on Rotten Tomatoes. That is the longest stretch of his career since before joining the MCU. Evans rarely found success with critics before playing Captain America, and while his time as the superhero drastically changed his fortune,Red Oneproves it wasn’t a permanent switch.
Overall, Evans has been in more Rotten movies than Fresh movies according to the review aggregator site sinceAvengers: Endgame. He found early success withKnives Out, which was thought to be a sign of what viewers could expect from Evans in his post-MCU career.Knives Outis still Evans' highest on Rotten Tomatoeswith a 97% rating.Lightyearis the only other movie where he had a significant role after 2019 that brought positive reviews, although the Pixar animated film’s 74% Tomatometer score is fairly generous.Red Onegives him his fifth Rotten movie post-MCU.
28%
97%
74%
45%
25%
23%
78%
Red One(2024)
32%
It’s worth noting that the only bright spot in Chris Evans' filmography during this rough stretch is his MCU return, albeit as Human Torch. He had a multiversecameo inDeadpool & Wolverineas Johnny Storm, giving him a role in a film with a 78% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. That’s a disheartening sign for Evans, as itreinforces the idea that he’s best in the MCU, showing how hard it has been for him to find success elsewhere. He’s done it occasionally since playing Captain America withSnowpiercerorKnives Out, but those examples are few and far between.
Red One Shows The Bigger Problem With Chris Evans' Post-MCU Career
Evans Is Following A Formula That Isn’t Working
Chris Evans' streak of Rotten movies on Rotten Tomatoes is bad, butRed Oneis worse than just being part of that trend. The idea that he would be in bad movies that critics don’t like is not new for him; there are over a dozen examples of this before and during his MCU tenure. The problem thatRed Onerepresents is that Chris Evans is falling into a formula that simply isn’t working. Instead of taking on challenging projects that are interesting but just didn’t work out as well as he’d hoped,his recent films are all big-budget, generic titles made for streaming services that feel empty.
Red OnejoinsPain Hustlers,Ghosted, andThe Gray Manas titles that fit that generic description, even if it is technically getting a theatrical release first. Amazon MGM originally developed the movie as an exclusive streaming release for Prime Video before shifting it to theaters after delays. Each of these movies follows the same formula, where Evans co-stars in a big-budget movie with another recognizable star - The Rock forRed One, Emily Blunt forPain Hustlers, Ana de Armas forGhosted, and Ryan Gosling forThe Gray Man- in a typically action-packed adventure.
Red One releases in theaters on July 23, 2025, almost a year after it was originally scheduled for a Prime Video release
While Evans' roles in each of these movies are not identical and the movies themselves vary in their subgenres,none fully escape the feeling of films that are made for audiences to mindlessly watch on a streaming servicebecause they have known actors, simple plots, and are widely available. Instead of Evans choosing projects that are must-see titles whether due to their franchise connections, bold original stories, or creation from notable auteurs, his post-MCU career has been stuffed with movies that are as easily forgettable as they are convenient to watch.
Chris Evans Returning To The MCU As Captain America Is His Best Bet - And Plausible Now
The Path Has Been Laid For His MCU Comeback
WithRed Onecontinuing this rotten stretch of Chris Evans' career, areturn as Captain America in the MCUis a clear-cut solution to his problems.He needs a movie or two that will put him back on the mapas a major figure in a box office and critical hit, and Marvel Studios has the perfect two projects coming up:Avengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars. Those films are guaranteed to be multi-billion-dollar box office performers that could give him a much-needed commercial hit.
Evans was only getting better in his portrayal of Captain America
More importantly, the MCU’s track record on Rotten Tomatoes - especially withAvengersmovies - means his return for either or both films could help him with critics too. Evans was only getting better in his portrayal of Captain America, and with the Russo Brothers at the helm ofDoomsdayandSecret Wars, they could once again pull a strong performance out of him.Returning to the MCU to play Captain America in the next twoAvengersfilms is Evans' best bet to fix his recent woesand make audiences forget about this down point in his career.
On some level,Chris Evans' MCU returnas Captain America inAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Warsis fully expected. These movies are meant to wrap up the Multiverse Saga, possibly even closing the door on the main MCU continuity as audiences know it. And with Robert Downey Jr. headlining the films as Doctor Doom,Marvel and Evans would leave a massive amount of cash on the table by not having Captain America returnto face off with him - or join him even.Red Onecontinuing the actor’s dismal run could help convince him to play Captain America again.
What Chris Evans & Kevin Feige Have Said About His MCU Return
Neither Have Ruled Out Captain America’s Return
AlthoughAvengers: Endgamegave Steve Rogers a fitting conclusion, the years that have followed have still been filled with questions for Chris Evans and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige about whether an MCU reunion is in the cards.Evans has been fairly firm in his stance that he doesn’t want to ruinEndgame’s endingand that it would take a special story and the right circumstances to lure him back. He understands the pressures associated with trying to top what is now his final MCU appearance as Captain America and doesn’t want to tarnish the experience for himself or fans.
Kevin Feige’s stance on Chris Evans coming backas Captain America has been level-headed and veiled in secrecy, per usual. Ahead of Evans’Deadpool & Wolverinecameo,Feige said his return as Captain America"can be done — if great care is taken.“That is far from confirmation that it will happen, but Feige and Evans continue to leave the door open to some degree. Now that Marvel Studios has gotten the Russos and Downey back for the next twoAvengersfilms, Evans could be next. It could be perfect time for him too based onRed One’s reception.
