Captain America has been the role that has made him an international star, but actor Chris Evans has hinted that he will stop playing the role after the fourth Avengers movie.

A new profile of the 36 year old actor in the New York Times this week suggests that he will step down and relinquish Captain America’s shield, and he’s quoted as saying “you want to get off the train before they push you off”.

Avengers: Infinity War, set for release on April 27th, is set to bring an unprecedented number of superheroes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe together in the same film.

Chris EvansChris Evans might be quitting as Captain America

Evans completed back-to-back filming for Infinity War and the as-yet-untitled fourth Avengers movie recently but, despite coming back for re-shoots for the fourth film later in 2018, he believes that outing as Steve Rogers, which will be released in 2019, will be his last.

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He initially had a six-film deal, but extended it to include a fourth Avengers movie. In addition to the three Captain America films and four Avengers films, he's also shot small cameos in 2013's Thor: The Dark World and last year's Spider-Man: Homecoming. That means, all in all, Evans appeared in at least one Marvel movie every year since 2011.

He’s not the only MCU actor to have vocalised thoughts about quitting in the recent past, with Robert Downey Jr. admitting that his Iron Man/Tony Stark role might have run its course.

“It's this cyclical thing,” Downey Jr. told News Corp Australia a few months back in an interview. “I could have said when the first Avengers came out: 'It's never going to get any better than that. Everybody stop.' But to me it's always about people and opportunities, like the Russos [the Avengers directors], who I adore.”

“Everyone says to me it's like a glove that fits so well… I just want to hang up my jersey before it's embarrassing.”

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