Variety has finally ended all of the speculation and rumors about who will don the red, white and blue for Marvel’s much-anticipated theatrical adaptation of Captain America. The bearer of the shield will be Marvel super-hero veteran Chris Evans, who lit up the big screen as the The Human Torch Johnny Storm in 2005’s Fantastic Four and 2007’s 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer.
Chris Evans beat out a laundry list of handsome Hollywood hunks bidding for the part, a list that reportedly included such buff boys as Ryan Phillippe, Chace Crawford, Channing Tatum, Patrick Flueger, John Krasinski, Garrett Hedlund, Michael Cassidy, Wilson Blethel and Scott Porter.
Chris Evans as Fantastic Four member The Human Torch Johnny Storm
The Wolfman‘s Joe Johnston will direct the script written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, based on the comic book character created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon in the 1940’s. Starring alongside Evans will be Hugo Weaving playing the villainous Red Skull. Also rumored to be on the project are the lovely trio of Alice Eve, Keira Knightley and Emily Blunt.
Evans reportedly signed on for three movies, the first of which will be called The First Avenger: Captain America, which is tentatively scheduled to hit theaters July 22, 2011. The will be Captain America’s origin story, telling the tale of the sickly Steve Rogers, who was injected with a super-soldier serum by the US military to create the perfect weapon in their fight against Nazi Germany in World War II.
Included in the three-movie deal is Evan’s appearance as Cap in the much-anticipated Marvel blockbuster “The Avengers,” which will bring together the Mount Rushmore of Marvel and Hollywood by featuring Evans as Captain America, Robert Downey, Jr. as Iron Man, Edward Norton as The Incredible Hulk and Chris Hemsworth as Thor! That guaranteed box office record setter is scheduled for a May 4, 2012 release.
Chris also crossed planes into the DC universe to play Jensen in the Warner Brothers production of The Losers, which should arrive in theaters April 23. Further evidence of Evans’ love of pen and ink-inspired films is his appearance in the Michael Cera-lead Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, based on the Oni Press graphic novels and set to premiere in the US August 13.
Evans as Captain America is a little hard on my brain, probably because I associate him with the sarcastic, flashy and slow-witted Human Torch, which are all terrible qualities for Captain America. Marvel seems to really have their act together (Their first two projects, The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man, were hugely successful critically and at the box office) so I will certainly be in line with my ticket in my hand and the benefit of the doubt in my brain!
