Chris Evans, voted Sexiest Man Alive today by People Magazine, entered a new level of fame in 2011 when he starred in “Captain America: The First Avenger” for Marvel Studios.
That film saw a very buff Evans running around battling the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) and the forces of HYDRA, but for much of the film’s first act, it involved a small and skinny actor in the role with computer trickery putting Evans’ face and voice over the on-set stand-in.
Now though, in a recent interview with The Times UK, famed “Succession” breakout star Jeremy Strong has revealed that he was offered the part of the pre-super serum Steve Rogers but he turned down the role:
“They told me there was a top-secret film about Captain America. They needed someone to play Captain America’s young body, before he turns into a superhero. They said they needed a transformational actor and would use CGI to put the actual actor’s face and voice over my own.”
At the time, Strong said he was broke, so he considered the idea and ultimately decided against it. Both that and a strange audition for “Cowboys & Aliens” led to Strong abandoning Hollywood and return to New York City to pursue acting:
“That’s my story of LA. It was just never going to happen for me here. It didn’t feel like what I had to offer was valued. And the next day I went back to New York and did a play about a veteran from Afghanistan in a wheelchair during the blackout of 2003.”
Things took another turn when Evans, who actually grew up with Strong in the same town of Sudbury, Massachusetts, was told about this. Evans had no idea and reportedly “gasped” when told of Strong’s story. He told the publication:
“Oh no!… It just goes to show the industry is so unpredictable. But I’m so happy things worked out, because I don’t think there was ever plan B for Jeremy.”
Strong can currently be seen in theaters in James Gray’s “Armageddon Time” and has a fourth season of “Succession” on the way.
