Chris Evans

My goodness I wish I’d been able to find a high-resolution copy of the “I understood that reference” beat, because that’s perfect for our purposes here. I think Evans himself would find it amusing. It’s not his best moment in the MCU, but figuring out what that is would take a lot of thought. Ironic that he rejected the role of Steve Rogers four times before finally being persuaded, because his performance was the heart of the franchise for many films. It’s possible he would’ve found a different role that similarly launched him into stardom, but it’s hard to think of one from those years that would have fit him better—or an actor who made a better Steve Rogers.

Here’s where I admit that I haven’t seen any of his pre-Cap roles. I’ve avoided the Fantastic Four movies on the grounds of they look terrible. Scott Pilgrim has never really appealed to me. And even he says a lot of the rest of his early movies are dire. Because of his chiseled blond appeal, he was cast in bland jock roles, the kind of person you’d long for if you were a teenage girl of standard tastes. Even his more unusual films were generally considered bad, and reviews of his own performances were all over the place, from “catatonic” to the delightfully prescient statement that one day he would make a good movie.

I’m an unabashed MCU fan, even if I’m behind on the more recent movies—it’s been hard to get to the theatre in the last few years, since none of my friends who would babysit still live in town. But when I saw Captain America: The First Avenger in the theatre, I was instantly drawn to his charm and charisma. Okay, yes, he was also attractive; I don’t wish to underplay that. But he was more than just a pretty face. He was clearly a skilled actor, and he made you really like Steve Rogers.

Now, he’s played Steve a dozen times, and no matter how fun the role is, it’s not difficult to imagine getting tired of it. It’s the same character over and over, and while he can be a complex and nuanced character when written well, that’s kind of not the point. Therefore it’s understandable that one of his biggest roles post-MCU was as the odious Ransom Drysdale in Knives Out. He’s superficially charming still, but there’s such underlying cruelty to the role. He’s also clearly having fun, and I won’t deny that the sweater is definitely part of the appeal.

Evans the person seems pretty decent, too; he’s my pick for Best Chris. He adopted a shelter dog. He became a father this month. He actively campaigns for equal rights. He fundraises for kids with cancer. When he accidentally posted a salacious picture of himself online, he quickly turned it into a call for voter registration, showing both a sense of humour about himself and a social conscience. And, yeah, he’s still making movies that I have no interest in. But that tends to be the script, not his acting. And he’s generally trying something new, so well done Chris Evans.