Most of us know that Chris Evans plays Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Many also know that he is one of the most handsome, charismatic, and approachable actors in Hollywood. But what else is there to this guy? Well, a lot, as it turns out.
Chris Evans Facts
42. The Dude Loves Dogs
Chris Evans has always been devoted to animal rights. For his recent film Gifted, there is a scene featuring an animal shelter. In between filming, Evans found and adopted a dog named Dodger from the same location.
41. Go West, Young Man
One of the earliest film performances that inspired Evans to become an actor in Hollywood was Jack Nicholson’s performance in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
40. Devoted and Proud!
Apparently, Evans has maintained his fandom of all things Disney. He can still recite the lyrics of the songs from The Little Mermaid by heart. No doubt that was good practice for memorizing lines later on in his life.
The Little Mermaid, Walt Disney Pictures
39. Interested in Introspection
Mental health is an important subject to him, and one of his hobbies is to read self-help books as well as books that focus on mindfulness. He wants to provide himself with a peaceful and content state of mind.
38. Damn You, Legolas!!!
Early on in his career, Evans lobbied hard for one of the lead roles in Elizabethtown, which he ended up losing to Orlando Bloom.
Elizabethtown (2005), Paramount Pictures
37. It’s the Thought That Counts
For his directorial debut Before We Go, Evans also played the lead role. He wanted to learn how to play the trumpet, as his character does in the film. However, he found the process so difficult that he resigned himself to memorizing where to put his fingers to play the different notes without actually playing the instrument. It seems like there really is something he can’t do.
Before We Go (2014), Nutmeg Film Productions
36. Could Have Kissed Sean Penn!
One of the parts Evans read for, but failed to get, was the role of Scott Smith in Milk. James Franco ended up playing the part instead.
35. Why Didn’t They Just CGI Him in?
When the Avengers are busy eating shawarma after they saved the world from Loki, you can see that Captain America isn’t eating or saying anything. This was because the scene was an extra shot that required everybody to come back to the project long after the filming had wrapped. Since then, Evans had gotten a buzz cut and grown out his beard for his part in Snowpiercer. He refused to shave for the scene, so they put a wig and a prosthetic jaw on his face.
The Avengers (2012), Marvel Studios
34. I Thought It Looked Familiar!
In the first Avengers film, the big fight in New York City causes a hot dog stand to be crushed. What makes it interesting is that this is the very same hot dog stand that Evans used during his performance in The Losers.
The Losers (2010), Warner Bros.
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33. He’s Too Good-Looking!
As incredible as Evans’ physique is, it almost prevented him from getting a specific project he wanted. When making the film Snowpiercer, director Joon-ho Bong had serious doubts about casting Evans in the film. Given that the character Curtis is meant to come from extreme poverty, he wouldn’t be able to be especially fit. The filmmakers resorted to tricks and costuming to hide Evans’ fitness from the camera, forcing audiences to focus on the film’s story instead.
Snowpiercer (2013), Stillking Films
32. Are They in the Same Universe??
Oddly enough, Snowpiercer wasn’t the first time that Evans has made a movie about Earth being caught in a new ice age. The first time he did that was in the film Sunshine.
31. Goofing Off
During filming of Thor: The Dark World, Loki turns into Captain America while trolling Thor. Apparently, Tom Hiddleston’s impression of Captain America amused Evans so much that he copied Hiddleston’s actions and inflections exactly when it was his turn to film the scene.
Thor: The Dark World (2013), Marvel Studios
30. Brotherly Love
Evans has always been highly supportive of the LGBT community. This could partly be because his younger brother, Scott Evans, is an openly gay man. Both Evans brothers have become actors.
29. Have Some Fun with It
While he was playing Johnny Storm (aka the Human Torch) in Fantastic Four, Evans was allowed to improvise some of his dialogue.
Fantastic Four (2005), Marvel Enterprises
28. Proud of Sonny
Fame isn’t always easy to deal with, and according to Evans, it was especially bizarre to see his face on ordinary items such as lunchboxes and pajamas. His mother caught onto the trend much faster than him. She allegedly converted her attic into a “museum of Captain America memorabilia.” No doubt she will charge for tickets to visit this museum once the paperwork is filled out.
27. This Better Lead to a Raise
Evans was paid a total of $300,000 for his role as Captain America in The First Avenger. Don’t feel too bad, though; his salary was bumped up considerably for the next Avengers films.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Marvel Entertainment
26. Hard Work for Face Time
Interestingly, Evans has the most screen time of all the main characters in Avengers: Age of Ultron at just over 50 minutes, even more than Iron Man’s 45 minutes. Fitting, given which of them is actually leading the team.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Marvel Studios
25. What if They Watched Fantastic Four?
One thing that made Evans nervous about taking on the role of Captain America was the fact that he had previously played the Human Torch in the Fantastic Four films. Thankfully, there were no hard feelings, and Evans managed to impress everyone with his take on the first Avenger.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Marvel Entertainment
24. Interesting Coincidence
Surprisingly, Chris Evans shares a birthday with two of his co-stars from the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Quicksilver) and Stellan Skarsgård (Dr. Selvig).
23. What Else Has He Done??
Not only has Chris Evans played two Marvel heroes, but he’s also played the famous antihero Casey Jones from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. He provided the voice of Jones in the animated film TMNT.
22. Let’s Burn Some Rubber!
Evans didn’t want his stunt driving to look inauthentic on the set of the action film Cellular. He put himself through stunt school for five weeks so that he could perform all his own action scenes.
Cellular (2004), New Line Cinema
21. Meet Your Heroes
The actor has spoken of his childhood crush on Sandra Bullock when he saw her in the movie Speed with Keanu Reeves. Evans would later get to work with Reeves in the urban cop film Street Kings.
20. A True Gentleman
While filming the movie Push, Evans took issue with the scene where his character gropes Camilla Belle’s character as they kiss. Evans refused to even touch Belle until she made it clear that she was comfortable with the scene going forward as written.
Push (2009), Summit Entertainment
19. Avenging Alumni
Not only have Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson appeared in the Marvel films together, they also both studied at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute. No word on if Samuel L. Jackson was ever their professor, however.
18. We All Start Somewhere
Evans’ first feature film was the family drama The Newcomers. By sheer coincidence, it was also the feature film debut of Paul Dano.
The Newcomers (2000), Edgewood Studios
17. Are You Me or Am I You?
Some of you are probably aware that Evans shares his name with another notable celebrity across the pond. The British Chris Evans is a businessman and television presenter who audiences would recognize from his appearances on Top Gear, TGI Friday, and most importantly, The Chris Evans Breakfast Show. At least they don’t look alike as well, or else we’d be in trouble!
16. Drawn Eastwards
Following in the footsteps of such Hollywood figures as Richard Gere and Oliver Stone, Chris Evans has been drawn to the Buddhist religion throughout his life. In the mid-2000s, Evans spent three weeks at a Buddhist retreat, and continues to study the philosophies of the Far East.
15. You Almost Said No??
Surprisingly, Evans didn’t need to audition to play Captain America. The filmmakers were the ones ringing his number to play the part. Even more surprisingly, Evans was very reluctant to take the role. His big worry was what taking on such a big role would do to his private life. As a result, he refused the role a whopping three times before he changed his mind. Since then, he’s come around to the role, saying that choosing to play Captain America was one of the best decisions he ever made.
Avengers: Endgame (2019), Marvel Studios
14. Good Advice From Iron Man
It turns out that it was Robert Downey Jr. who convinced Evans to give the role a chance. He suggested that Evans would have the freedom to take any role he wanted after he played Captain America. This ultimately pushed Evans to reconsider on the offer. No doubt it took all his acting ability to pretend like he wanted to fight Iron Man in Civil War.
13. The Burden of Heroism
Reportedly, the cowl that Evans wore during the first Avengers film was giving him migraines the entire time that he had to wear it.
The Avengers (2012), Marvel Studios
12. Interesting Choice
According to Evans himself, his favorite of all the films he’s done is Sunshine. Just don’t tell anyone at Disney that he said that!
11. DIY
Evans is a hands-on guy: for his sci-fi film Push, which he did with Dakota Fanning, he did all his own fighting scenes, despite getting badly bruised in the process.
Push (2009), Summit Entertainment
10. Mad for More Ink
Some Hollywood actors have to deal with serious addictions, but one of Chris Evans’ addictions is tattoos. He is very fond of them and each one of his has a personal meaning. According to the man himself, “Anyone who's had a tattoo knows once you get your first one, as you're walking out the door, you're planning the next.”
9. Go Back to the Drawing Board
According to Evans, his childhood dream wasn’t to be an actor. He wanted to be an artist, whether it was drawing or painting. Being an animator for Disney was something in particular that caught his attention. At least he did end up working at Disney in some capacity.
8. What a Humanitarian!
Evans is not only a regular visitor to Boston Children’s Hospital, he has also supported Breast Cancer Care and partaken in Super Bowl bets to raise money for charity.
Flickr, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
7. Just Kiss Her Already!
As of 2018, Evans and his close friend Scarlett Johansson have appeared in seven movies together: The Perfect Score, The Nanny Diaries, The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, and Avengers: Infinity War.
Wikimedia Commons,Gage Skidmore
6. Creative Collaboration
Evans has revealed that he and best buddy Johansson personally wrote much of the dialogue they shared during Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Marvel Entertainment
5. The Good Old Days
During Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America and Black Widow have a scene where Captain America comments that SHIELD knows everything about them, even their SAT scores. This is a subtle nod to The Perfect Score, wherein Evans and Johansson are part of a plan to steal the answers to the SAT.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Marvel Entertainment
4. Unlucky in Love
We all have awkward memories from high school, but Evans’ memories are tainted by a broken heart. According to him, his prom date danced with him all night, but then she went back to her ex. We wish we could have been there to see her reaction to watching Evans on the big screen for the first time.
3. Thank Goodness It Wasn’t Bagpipes!
Evans’ mother, a former professional dancer, passed on a bit of a dancing bug to her son, but it manifested slightly differently in Evans. Reportedly, he uses tap dance as form of self-therapy for his anxiety, and his mother once installed a tap dance floor in their basement.
2. Oh My…
Contrary to rumors, there was no CGI to enhance Chris Evans’ muscles in Captain America: Civil War when he tries to stop a helicopter from taking off using his own strength. Evans spent a great deal of time exercising for that moment on screen, which was universally well-received. Tom Hiddleston (Loki) admitted that it was one of his all-time favorite Marvel moments.
Captain America: Civil War (2016), Marvel Studios
1. Hubba-Hubba
We all know about that legendary moment in the first Captain America film when Steve Rogers emerges from the machine in all his muscular glory. As well as amazing everyone in the audience, Evans very nearly overwhelmed his co-star Hayley Atwell. According to Atwell, her surprised response was genuine, and she very nearly broke character as she looked upon Evans’ physique for the first time.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Marvel Entertainment
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