Captain America, Thor to visit Seoul ahead of 'Avengers: Doomsday' opening

Actors Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth will visit South Korea ahead of the release of "Avengers: Doomsday," joined by Marvel Studios President and producer Kevin Feige.

Walt Disney Company Korea, the film's importer and distributor, announced Friday that the three will arrive Dec. 7 and take part in a press conference and red carpet event.

"Avengers: Doomsday" opens in South Korea on Dec. 16, two days before its North American release date. It is the fifth installment in the Avengers franchise and the first since "Avengers: Endgame" in 2019 — a seven-year gap. Directors Anthony and Joe Russo, who helmed both "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Endgame," return to direct.

The film's villain is Doctor Doom. Robert Downey Jr., who launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe with "Iron Man" in 2008, returns not as Tony Stark but as Doctor Doom. Facing him is an ensemble of existing MCU heroes alongside characters from the "Fantastic Four" and "X-Men" franchises — including Captain America Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), Black Panther (Letitia Wright), Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal) and Professor X (Patrick Stewart).

The Avengers, assembled in the first film in 2012, suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Thanos in "Infinity War" in 2018, losing half of all life in the universe. In "Endgame" the following year, they traveled back in time to fight back — a battle that cost Tony Stark his life and led Steve Rogers to lay down his shield. The series has been a major box office force in South Korea. The first film drew more than 7 million admissions, and three consecutive entries — from "Age of Ultron" through "Endgame" — each surpassed 10 million. "Endgame" finished with about 13.97 million admissions.

Evans played the original Captain America, Steve Rogers, from "Captain America: The First Avenger" in 2011 through "Endgame," where the character lived out his days in the past before passing his shield to Sam Wilson. A trailer released last December confirmed Rogers' return with the line: "Steve Rogers returns in 'Avengers: Doomsday.'" This will be Evans' first Marvel-related visit to South Korea in 11 years, since the "Age of Ultron" press tour in 2015. His connection to the country goes back to 2013, when he appeared in director Bong Joon-ho's "Snowpiercer," and he returned in 2014 to film "Age of Ultron" scenes on the streets of Seoul. At the 2015 press conference, Evans described the response from Korean fans as making him feel "like a member of the Beatles."

Hemsworth has played Thor for 15 years, since "Thor" in 2011. The film's trailer features a scene in which Thor prays to his father Odin to let him "defeat the enemy one more time and return to that child." This marks Hemsworth's first visit to South Korea for a Marvel film promotion. Hemsworth previously came to Korea in March last year to film the Disney+ documentary series "Limitless with Chris Hemsworth," during which he participated in special forces training, sparred with former mixed martial artist and broadcaster Kim Dong-hyun, and performed 108 prostrations at Beomeosa temple in Busan. Feige, who has led Marvel Studios since "Iron Man," is making his third trip to South Korea, following visits for "Thor: The Dark World" in 2013 and "Endgame" in 2019.