10 Subtle Details That Made Chris Evans’ Captain America So Perfect

Few superhero actors have been as lauded as Chris Evans when it came to his performance as Captain America, and a surprising amount of subtlety went into his efforts to nail the bombastic role. For over ten years, Chris Evans held up his end as a pillar character of the MCU, a founding Avengers member, leader, and beating emotional heart of the team. There are so many tiny details that ultimately resulted in Evans’ universally-praised performance as Cap, endearing a relatively bland character into becoming a fan-favorite.

Evans had previous experience with playing superheroes going into the role, playing The Human Torch in Fox’s Fantastic Four duology. Though the old-school morality of Steve Rogers was a far cry from the abrasive personality of hotshot Johnny Storm, Evans was able to forge the perfect performance as Captain America in the MCU. Going above and beyond to perfect the role with his work in the role, Evans put a shocking amount of care into the specifics of Steve Roger’s character, leaving big shoes for Anthony Mackie to fill in the upcoming Captain America 4.

10 Chris Evans’ Voice Acting As Old Steve Rogers

Physicality Wasn’t All Evans Brought To The Table

Avengers: Endgame shocked fans with an eerily-realistic depiction of Chris Evans as an old man, aging Captain America into his twilight years for his retirement. While CGI may have done the heavy lifting for the senior Steve Rogers’ appearance, Evans was able to sell a completely authentic “old man voice” with no help from special effects, showing off his dynamic range. The combination of weary trembling and quiet satisfaction Evans was able to inject his few lines as old Steve was an impressive display of acting ability to close out his run as Captain America.

9 Chris Evans’ Captain America Changes From Movie To Movie

Cap’s Personality Always Adjusted To The Context Of His Films

Among the many trilogies within the MCU, Captain America’s films have always been very different from one another. Going from a pulpy war movie period piece to a moody political thriller to a miniature Avengers installment, Captain America’s appearances have consistently been in very different contexts. Whether playing a capable and confident leader in Avenges: Age of Ultron or a jaded ex-patriot on the run in Avengers: Infintiy War, Chris Evans was always able to adapt his performance as Steve to the situation the individual film calls for, never comfortable with resting on his laurels with a static performance across multiple movies.

8 Evan’s Theater Experience Sold Captain America’s Earnestness

The Sincerity Of The Stage Translated Beautifully To The Big Screen

Not just a screen actor, Chris Evans had plenty of theater experience going into his tenure as Captain America. Among the Avengers lineup, Steve Rogers is a particularly campy, yet earnest character, with less of the venomous self-awareness of MCU fast-talkers like Iron Man or Doctor Strange. It’s clear that Chris Evans theater experience played a big part in helping him sell the old-fashioned integrity of Steve to a modern audience, sometimes seeming to almost directly address viewers when defending his values from the futuristic world he found himself in.

7 His Physique Nearly Made Hayley Atwell Break Character

Chris Evans Certainly Put In The Work To Look The Part

Chris Evans was able to achieve one of the most impressive physiques in the entire superhero genre. In Captain America: The First Avenger, Hayley Atwell’s Peggy Carter is astonished upon seeing Chris Evans emerge from the experiment chamber that injected him with the serum, running her hand along his chest. It turns out this moment was both in and out of character, as Atwell’s mind went a little blank on seeing Evans’ impressive form for the first time. Luckily, her gut reaction fit the scene excellently, Evans’ work to embody Captain America clearly having a real effect on his co-stars.

6 Chris Evans Had To Be Convinced To Take The Role

Nothing Is More Captain America Than Being Weary Of Fame And Fortune

Upon being offered the historic role by Marvel Studios, Chris Evans was reluctant to accept, worrying about the impact that the commitment and fame would have on his life. While his Mom and even Robert Downey Jr. persuaded Evans to play Cap, an aversion to glitz and glamor for its own sake is undeniably in-character for Steve Rogers. Whereas other actors would’ve leapt at the chance, Evans’ own hesitation to take the role ironically made him perfect for it, embodying Captain America’s distaste for chasing accolades or basking in praise going forward.

5 Evans Wrote Some Of His Own Dialogue In The Winter Soldier

He Understood The Role Well Enough To Be Trusted With The Character.

Part of what made Captain America: The Winter Soldier such a standout entry in the MCU’s offerings was the dynamic between an on-the-lam Black Widow and Captain America, playing off of each other as comrades and friends. It turns out this dynamic was able to shine through thanks to Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson being allowed to contribute to the script, penning some of the banter between their characters themselves (via Digitalspy.com). It’s safe to say that Chris’ input on his scenes being taken into consideration helped strengthen his performance even further, without most people realizing how far his influence even went.

4 Chris Evans Used A Tie-In VIdeo Game To Help Improve Cap’s Fighting Style

Being A Fan Of Your Own Character Has Some Real Benefits

A seldom-remembered tie-in game for the first Captain America movie, Captain America: Super Soldier was played by Chris Evans himself, who was inspired by the game’s portrayal of Cap’s fighting style. The more dynamic and fluid athleticism of Captain America’s gameplay in the title was pointed out by Evans to the Russo brothers, asking if such moves could be incorporated in his second film (via Cracked.com). As a result, Captain America went from a straight-laced boxer in Captain America: The First Avenger to an acrobatic powerhouse in The Winter Soldier, bringing his movements in the game to life.

3 Evans Got An On-Set Pump For The Famous Helicopter Scene

No CGI-Enhancements Were Used In Evans’ Astounding Flexing

No scene better showed off Chris Evans’ physical embodiment of Captain America than the helicopter scene in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, in which the hero attempts to stop the Winter Soldier from escaping by pulling his vehicle back down to Earth. Initially embarrassed to work out on-set, Evans took a page out of Anthony Mackie’s book, shamelessly curling weights until right before the scene was shot, making his muscles pop with no VFX required. Even with the pump beforehand, Evans wound up slightly injuring his arm during the scene, but his suffering was certainly not in vain.

2 Evans Improvised His Banter With Chris Hemsworth

The Two Chrises Always Bounced Off Each Other Well

Part of what made Captain America work so well as a core Avenger was his interactions with the other heroes. Evans’ own personality got to shine through in Avengers: Infinity War, as he completely ad-libbed the only scene he shared with fellow Chris and Thor actor, Chris Hemsworth (via Popbuzz.com). The banter flowed easily as the two Avengers teased each other over their updated looks, a nice humorous bend to their long-overdue reunion within the story. Chris Evans’ ability to think on his feet and pull from his knowledge of Steve Rogers helps him in crafting enjoyable beats such as his ribbing at the hands of Thor.

1 The Evans Family’s Political Activism Shined Through Chris’ Performance

Both Evans And Steve Rogers Speak Up For Their Beliefs

As a character that represents the United States, for better and for worse, Captain America is inexorably tied to politics. Luckily, Evans never shied away from this, using his platform as a famous actor to campaign for causes he believed in and keep Americans informed with his website, A Starting Point (via People.com). Part of what made Steve Rogers’ constant standing up for his values so believable was the fact that Evans himself had also done so, injecting his earnestness and politically-savvy upbringing in real-life into his career-defining performance as Captain America.