The race to find an actor to play Captain America seems to be entering the final stretch. Late yesterday IESB said Marvel and director Joe Johnston had narrowed it down to three actors – Chris Evans (Fantastic Four), Channing Tatum (G.I. Joe) and Sebastian Stan (Gossip Girl) – but then THR updated the news to say The Human Torch himself, Chris Evans, has been offered the part, but is yet to accept or decline.
Rather annoyingly for the other actors who tested for the role, including John Krasinski (The Office), Chase Crawford (Gossip Girl), Scott Porter (Friday Night Lights), Mike Vogel (Poseidon), Michael Cassidy (Privileged), and Patrick Flueger (Brothers), they didn’t even bother to give Evans a screen test, offering him the role on the strength of single reading of a few scenes.
Evans’ offer would include starring in up to three Captain America movies, plus The Avengers movies and appearances in several other Marvel flciks (it’s cover up to nine films in total). While an offer to star in Captaing America may seem like something you don’t have to mull over too long, one possible complication is that Evans is committed to co-starring in the Anna Faris romantic comedy What’s Your Number?. Both are scheduled to shoot this summer.
It’s also true that for someone who’s already fairly famous, a nine-film contract is a huge commitment and many actors would be nervous of being stuck with a single character for so long, particularly as they’re likely to be able to earn more money elsewhere (Marvel’s contract aren’t well known for offering huge amounts of cash).
Although there’s been some talk about whether Evans should play Captain America so soon after being Johnny Storm in the Fantastic Four movie, it might be better to look at that as a dry run. He was very good in the movies, even if the films themselves were fun but not particularly memorable. He’s certainly got the self-assured superhero nature down pat, as well as being able to handle humour.
We’ll let you know whether he accepts the role or not.