Entertainment
With all of the movies that have led up to Avengers: Endgame, there's been ample opportunity for the MCU stars to get to know each other over the years. And fortunately, many of the Avengers actors are friends in real life — as proven by how chummy they have become during their many interviews to promote the many Marvel movies that have been released. It's impossible not to feel joy while watching, say, the three MCU Chrises goof off together, or to see Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan talk about the escape room they visited before hitting a red carpet.
Plus, a number of the Avengers actors have worked together before joining the MCU, too. Did you know, for instance, that Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch's friendship goes all the way back to 2011's War Horse? Or that Winston Duke and Lupita Nyong'o went to Yale together?
Here are some of the best star-powered friendships to come out of the MCU, along with photos to prove just how close the actors are. No matter what happens at the end of Avengers: Endgame, the movie's stars have found lifelong friends in each other during the years of filming the Avengers movies. And that's something special in its own right.
1
Chris Evans & Chris Hemsworth
The two Chrises were paired together during Avengers: Age of Ultron press interviews in 2015, and they couldn't stop making each other crack up. Oh, and Chris Evans called Chris Hemsworth "Hemmy" during a recent interview.
2
Brie Larson & Samuel L. Jackson
Before Captain Marvel, Larson and Jackson co-starred in Unicorn Store and Kong: Skull Island, both of which premiered in 2017. And according to Vulture, it was Larson's idea to have Jackson's Nick Fury play a bigger role in Captain Marvel. The best evidence of this friendship, though, might be the duo's performances of "Shallow" and "7 Rings," which are both quite fun to watch.
3
Robert Downey Jr. & Mark Ruffalo
If RDJ let Ruffalo try on his sunglasses (click through to the third slide), you know this friendship is real. And in 2014, Ruffalo compared Downey, Jr. to an "older brother." There's also the time that Downey Jr., Ruffalo, Chris Evans, and Chris Hemsworth sang "Hey Jude" together, which is a delightful treat.
4
Tom Holland, Robert Downey Jr., & Chris Evans
Downey Jr.'s Instagram post is cute, but it's Holland's comment that really makes it. Holland wrote, "the love is real boss man." Seeing him call the actor "boss man" is really just too good.
5
Paul Rudd & Jeremy Renner
For Rudd's birthday earlier this month, he and Renner posed for a hilarious photo making fun of The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which Rudd acted in. And for Rudd's birthday earlier this month, One reporter even nicknamed their relationship "Rudder," so it's really official now.
6
Paul Rudd & Chris Hemsworth
Hemsworth and Rudd seem to have had a mini prank war going on behind-the-scenes. Apparently, the Thor star drew all over an Ant-Man poster, but it's not clear if Rudd got his costar back in the end. The faces they're making in this picture, though, are a reminder that it's all in good fun.
7
Brie Larson & Robert Downey, Jr.
Robert Downey, Jr. wasn't in Captain Marvel, but he's clearly a fan of Larson's character. Click through to the third slide for an epic power pose from these two.
8
Robert Downey Jr. & Samuel L. Jackson
Two legendary actors, one epic photo. "Proud proponent of @samuelljackson for president. Of all nations," Downey Jr. captioned the picture in 2017.
9
Mark Ruffalo & Tom Holland
The two actors notorious for spoiling MCU secrets seem to have bonded over the fact. "Just a couple of spoilers," Holland captioned this photo from April 2018.
10
Brie Larson & Tessa Thompson
Captain Marvel and Valkyrie have become a fan 'ship of their own, but the stars are also super close off-screen. Larson and Thompson are also both involved in the Time's Up movement. And Thompson wrote Larson's profile for the Time 100 list this year, further cementing their bond.
11
Tom Holland & Chris Pratt
If an emoji's worth a thousand words, this picture says it all. "The love is real @prattprattpratt Thanks @jacobbertrand_tomholland for making this," Holland captioned this pic in February 2018.
12
Tom Hiddleston & Brie Larson
Long before Captain Marvel came out, Larson and Hiddleston were co-starring with Samuel L. Jackson in Kong: Skull Island. And yep, their images were printed on a popcorn tub.
13
Tom Hiddleston & Samuel L. Jackson
The Kong: Skull Island love continues. Seriously, this friendship is real. And it's too sweet to be contained in just one photo.
14
Chris Evans & Robert Downey Jr.
The two actors have compared their friendship to that of Woody and Buzz from Toy Story. So, yeah, they're close, even if their characters didn't exactly get along in Captain America: Civil War.
15
Chris Evans & Scarlett Johansson
As Screenrant explained, the MCU wasn't the first time these two acted together. Johansson and Evans starred in The Perfect Score in 2004, long before they were Black Widow and Captain America. They also co-starred in The Nanny Diaries in 2007. These days, they make faces at each other on Avengers red carpets.
16
Winston Duke & Lupita Nyong'o
Before terrorizing fans in Us, Duke and Nyong'o co-starred in Black Panther. But long before that, the two actors attended the Yale School of Drama together — their friendship goes back to before they were famous.
17
Chris Pratt & Tom Hiddleston
Hiddleston looks like he's having a little more fun in this picture, but Pratt's caption emphasized how much he enjoyed his costar's company. "Hanging on the carpet with the god of mischief himself @twhiddleston helluuva nice guy and great actor," Pratt wrote in April 2018.
18
Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong'o, & Danai Gurira
Black Panther stars Wright, Nyong'o, and Gurira are just as close off-screen as they were in the movie. And Daniel Kaluuya's photobomb really makes this the perfect picture.
19
Sebastian Stan & Anthony Mackie
The Captain America: Civil War costars' offscreen friendship has been well-documented by fans on YouTube. Please cut to 1:47 in this video, where the actors talk about the pocket square Stan gave Mackie for Christmas, featuring an image of his face.
20
Benedict Cumberbatch & Tom Hiddleston
Hiddleston and Cumberbatch starred in 2011's War Horse together, so they've known each other for years, pre-Avengers. Just check out this fan-created video about their friendship, including Cumberbatch's spot-on impression of his costar.
21
Anthony Mackie, Samuel L. Jackson, Don Cheadle, Laurence Fishburne, & Chadwick Boseman
"The power that that has. The intelligence that that has. The clearance that that has. The access that that has. The influence that that has. The profile that that has. The international implications that that has." Ana Navarro was speaking about Michael Flynn and the Russia investigation when she said this heavily memed statement on The View. But she could have also been talking about the fact that actors from Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Iron Man 3, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and Black Panther were all hanging out together.
Avengers: Endgame might signal the end for some fan-favorite MCU characters. But fans will always have plenty of photos and videos from the press tours to look back on, and it really does look like the actors will be friends for years to come.
