Chris Evans has finally responded to the backlash over a re-surfaced viral photo taken in 2016.
The actor, best known for his portrayal of Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has been a hot talking point online after a photo of him signing what many believed to be a "bomb" in 2016 during a visit to the US Army base in Turkey.
The photo shows the star with a pen in his hand, signing what looks to be some sort of missile, while a member of the forces holds it up for him with a smile on his face.
And with many politicians - such as Nikki Haley - being exposed for signing bombs amid the deaths of thousands in Palestine, many couldn't help but slam the actor for also doing the "same thing".
However, in a new statement posted to Instagram, the 42-year-old has finally addressed the snapshot.
"This image was taken during a USO tour in 2016... I went with a group of actors, athletes, and musicians to show appreciation for our service members,” he wrote on his Instagram Stories.
"The object I was asked to sign is not a bomb, or a missile, or a weapon of any kind,” he added. “It’s an inert object used for training or display purposes only."
Evans also included a screenshot from an AFP Fact Check report allegedly "debunking" the misinformation around the photo.
The AFP wrote that the photo was taken "as [Evans] and other celebrities visited troops in Turkey in 2016, years before the militant group’s [Hamas] deadly attack on Israel plunged the region into conflict."
But some social media users were not impressed with the explanation at all.
Another added: "Waking up to see Chris Evans trying to defend himself over signing a bomb in a war zone is hilarious. His argument is that it wasn’t a real bomb. Mate, if you sign a toy gun outside a school is it still ok because it’s fake? It’s the message you’re sending out, you stupid ****."
And this X-user was also less than impressed, commenting: "Chris Evans clarifying that he didn’t sign a real bomb but instead a training decoy of a bomb is not the serve he thought it was."
A third then mocked Evans, tweeting: “'I didn’t sign a bomb, I signed a model of a bomb' —Chris Evans".
But Evans did have fans express their support, with one person reiterating Evans' comments that the object was simply a "training aid", and another saying: "It's the way someone took the time to crop that picture and spread a completely false rumor just to make people hate him. That's crazy."
At the time, Evans was among a group of celebs including fellow Marvel co-star Scarlett Johansson, basketball champ Ray Allen, former Olympic swimmer Maya DiRado, and musician Craig Campbell who visited US armed forces stationed in Turkey in December 2016.
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