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It’s been five years since Chris Evans suited up as Captain America for what was seemingly the last time in Avengers: Endgame, but we still have a hard time picturing anyone but him bringing Steve Rogers to life in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

He’s simply so well-cast in the role that it’s like he’s playing himself! It’s been years since he last picked up the shield, but he’ll always be our Cap.

While he is now synonymous with the part, Chris initially turned it down. Who might have picked up the shield if he never agreed to lead the Avengers? We did some digging and rounded up 11 actors who were considered for the role.

Interestingly, some of them wound up acting alongside Chris in the MCU. Two of them even yielded Cap’s shield at various points.

Others joined the franchise after he left. Some even had the chance to play roles in other mega-successful franchises, and one of them later revealed that they had to apologize to Marvel after their audition! The final actor to join the list would have put a very different spin on the iconic hero.

In honor of the fifth anniversary of Endgame and the end of Chris‘ run as Cap, check out the other stars who were up for the part.

Scroll through the slideshow to see who else could have played Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe…

Lady Gaga cemented her status as one of music’s biggest voices and Hollywood’s brightest stars with her role in 2018′s A Star is Born.

Her portrayal of singer/songwriter Ally Maine alongside Bradley Cooper earned Gaga her first Oscar win and laid the groundwork for future roles, including Joker: Folie a Deux.

It signified the first time that Mother Monster took the lead in a blockbuster. And while she’s iconic in the role, some fans might not be aware that A Star is Born is a movie that had already been made three times before Lady Gaga was cast.

The first version of the movie was released in 1937 and starred Janet Gaynor; the second came out in 1954 with Judy Garland in the lead. Barbra Streisand took center stage in the version of the movie released in 1976.

A fourth version of A Star is Born had been in the works for years with various talent associated with it by the time that Gaga was cast. That included five other female vocalists who could have landed the starring role. One of them was even attached to the movie at least twice, with reports suggesting that she wasn’t selected because the studio couldn’t afford her asking price.

Who were they and what happened that led to them being overlooked? We did all the digging!

Scroll through all of the musical acts that were considered for Lady Gaga’s part in A Star Is Born…

Chris Pratt faced some very stiff competition to play Star-Lord in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The actor perfectly embodies the fun but complex hero in several films across the franchise. However, he faced stiff competition from a talented batch of actors to earn a chance to join the Avengers.

In a franchise that already had several (expertly cast) actors named Chris on the team, he was introduced as the plucky and smart-mouthed Star-Lord (aka Peter Quill) in 2014′s Guardians of the Galaxy.

Since then, he’s stepped out with the team of heroes multiple times, most recently in 2023′s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

While he is now synonymous with the part, we did some digging and rounded up 15 other actors who auditioned for the opportunity. Interestingly, there are even rumors about who were the second and third choices.

Some of his competitors wound up acting alongside Chris in the MCU. One even joined the cast of the first Guardians movie in another role. Others have fronted their own mega-successful franchises.

Scroll through the slideshow to see who else could have played Star-Lord in the Marvel Cinematic Universe…

Henry Cavill‘s charm, chiseled good looks and acting chops have helped him build a career as a fan-favorite star in Hollywood.

He famously embodied Superman in the DC Universe and was even planning to reprise the role before some rebranding changed plans.

Outside of DC, Henry‘s known for project’s like Netflix’s The Witcher and so much more, and his newest movie The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare premieres this week!

Henry‘s hit it big and is beloved in the industry. But like any other actor, he’s been in the running for some major roles that he did not end up landing. We did some digging and found seven examples of A-list projects that Henry was attached to over the years.

Interestingly, for at least two of them he was deemed to be too old for the part. It was decided that he was too young for another. We rounded up everything we know about each missed opportunity for you to check out!

Scroll through the slideshow to see what movies Henry Cavill almost starred in…

Chris Hemsworth is both one of Hollywood’s favorite “Chris” stars and a beloved member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe where he plays the God of Thunder.

In fact, the 40-year-old actor was so well cast as Thor that he was seemingly born into the role. However, that isn’t the case. He actually faced some stiff competition from a field of very talented actors.

He began playing the Norse god in 2011′s Thor and has suited up multiple times since then. The last time he yielded his iconic hammer was in 2022′s Thor: Love and Thunder, which saw him reunite with original franchise star Natalie Portman.

While he quite simply is Thor now, he actually competed with 10 other actors to land the role, including one successful actor who recently spoke out about their experience.

Interestingly, one of Chris‘ competitors wound up making his own MCU debut alongside Chris in Thor. Others have recalled suiting up for auditions. Chris himself admitted that he thought he knew was going to get the part at one time, and it was not himself but the star of another very successful franchise.

Scroll through the slideshow to see who else could have played Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe…

Liam Hemsworth is a talented actor with a legacy of success in Hollywood.

Best known for playing Gale in The Hunger Games, the actor has had other big wins over the years and has even more work in the pipeline.

Interestingly, over the course of his career, at least two of Liam‘s roles were previously given to another actor before he took them over.

The first wound up becoming one of his most enduring roles and helped put him on the map. We haven’t seen him in the other just yet, but we expect to in the very near future.

What were these roles, who did Liam end up replacing and why did the change happen? We pulled all that information together for you!

Scroll through the slideshow to see the two roles that Liam Hemsworth replaced another actor in…

The cast of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants is still close nearly 20 years after they first came together.

Blake Lively, America Ferrera, Alexis Bledel and Amber Tamblyn played best friends united by a pair of pants that followed them on huge adventures in two movies starting back in 2005.

The perfect cast is part of what made the franchise as successful as it is. However, we recently learned that several other big actresses were in the running for the roles.

Producer Debra Martin Chase named six stars who were could have played Carmen, Tibby, Lena and Bridget during an appearance on the Hollywood Gold podcast.

The shortlist included one actress who was famous for her role on The O.C. and several other young actresses who have gone far in Hollywood. Debra shared insight into how they selected each person for their roles and opened up about the challenges behind the decisions.

Scroll through the slideshow to see which actresses were considered for which roles…