Chris Evans goes from 98-pound weakling to buff superhero in a matter of moments in the upcoming summer smash "Captain America," but luckily for him, film studios have computers to do the heavy lifting these days. Or at least most of it.
Playing scrawny Army reject Steve Rogers in the film adaptation of the beloved comic book, Evans comes out of an experimental chamber all hopped up on a secret serum that would make Barry Bonds blush. It helps him become the US Army's ultimate super soldier, and while the early reviews rave about the transformation, Evans had to fight to make it happen.
"They went back and forth on the type of technology they were going to use. Initially, they were just going to do body shrinking, and then they thought, 'Well, maybe we can get another skinny actor and put Chris' head on it,' and I really, really was against that," Evans told USA Weekend. "I said to Joe [Johnston, director], "Look, I know we want this to look good and this effect to not be distracting from the film, but it has to be my performance. I don't want to share this. Your body is a huge piece of the acting puzzle, and I don't want to have somebody else's body tell the story that I'm trying to tell.' So they did some tweaking and they did a bunch of tests and we went back to the initial plan to shrink my body."
The results speak for themselves -- Evans goes from looking like a weak child to revealing a cut physique. Beyond the body, though, this film should have been a bit of a familiar event for Evans, as already had major experience with the comic movie genre. Evans starred as The Human Torch in the two "Fantastic Four" movies, and played, in a bit of fitting meta-fiction, an action star/warrior in the graphic novel-based "Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World."
As press duties heat up for what may end up being the biggest film of the summer, Evans is also excited about a smaller project that he's working on, an independent film called "Puncture" making its debut at the Tribeca Film Fest.
"It's a completely different feel. Sometimes in movies like [Captain America], there's a lot of money involved, and as a result, everyone is paid a lot of money to make everything look perfect," Evans said. "You've seen these movies - it's art, it's gorgeous. But as a result, it's very tedious. Some days, you really sit around, and you go home and you're like, 'Man, I spent maybe 60 percent of my day sitting on my ass.' A little indie movie, you go go go."
For more, click over to USA Weekend.