Chris Evans says he's turned down hosting Saturday Night Live for ‘years’

Despite playing one of the strongest Avengers for over a decade, Chris Evans has admitted that the thought of hosting Saturday Night Live terrifies him.

In fact, the actor has revealed that he has been avoiding the gig ‘like the plague’ for years due to a very surprising reason.

Whilst the former MCU star might not be up for taking over the mantle, one of his co-stars has just made her debut on the iconic skit show.

Knives Out star Ana De Armas appeared on SNL last night, during which she announced that she would become an American citizen in just three weeks’ time.

The 34-year-old grew up in Cuba and could barely speak English when she first arrived in the States in her mid-twenties.

Determined to make it as an actor, she turned to the iconic 90s series, Friends, in a bid to learn the language.

In her opening monologue, she joked: “Who would’ve thought that the best English tutor would be Chandler Bing? I mean, look at me now. Could I be any better at English?”

Certainly, her hard work seems to have paid off as De Armas just received her first Oscar nomination for Marylin Monroe biopic, Blonde.

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Having worked with the Cuban star on Knives Out and Ghosted, Evans gushed about her first SNL appearance.

"I love working with Ana. She's an incredibly versatile actress and really fun on set," he told PEOPLE magazine, adding that he knew she’d be ‘amazing’ on the show.

When asked about whether he’d take on the gig, the Marvel actor admitted that he’d been avoiding hosting for years – due to fears about him not being funny.

He explained why he'd turned down SNL, saying: "A cameo, I can handle. I've avoided hosting SNL like the plague for years now just because I'm so scared. It's terrifying to me,"

The 41-year-old continued, telling the publication: "To me, [hosting] would just be one of those things that every single night I would wake up in a cold sweat.”

The Marvel actor admitted to avoiding SNL. Credit Disney/Marvel

Shocking, Evans wasn’t always this nervous about his comedy skills and even appeared in the parody film Not Another Teen Movie in the early noughties.

However, he became anxious after one cruel remark and explained: “…I only feel that because I have very, very funny friends who once told me I'm not a funny person."

Whilst the Gray Man actor may still get anxious about his comic ability, he’s enjoying feeling more secure in his other roles after exiting the Marvel Cinema Universe.

"The most enjoyable aspect of my career right now is feeling secure enough to take my foot off the gas," Evans told PEOPLE, saying: "I feel like I have a bit more freedom to take time away from the industry and still find projects that will satisfy my creative appetite when I return."