“Have them hate you forever”: Chris Evans’ Biggest Fear While Making His $333 Million Marvel Film That Now Holds Cult Classic Status
- Chris Evans played Human Torch in Fantastic Four and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.
- Evans returned to play the character in Deadpool & Wolverine.
- Joseph Quinn to take over the character in the upcoming The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
Regarded as one of the finest actors in the industry, Chris Evans rose to fame with his portrayal of Johnny Storm a.k.a. Human Torch in Fantastic Four in 2005. Despite receiving negative reviews from critics, the movie managed to be a success at the box office. Evans later went on to star as Captain America in the MCU until Avengers: Endgame in 2019.
Chris Evans’ work as Steve Rogers/Captain America helped him to solidify his position in the industry and make him one of the highest-paid actors. His work has been highly lauded by the audience and the critics, and he reprised his character of Johnny Storm for Deadpool & Wolverine. Evans had shared earlier one fear while he was filming Fantastic Four.
Chris Evans admits his fear of 2005’s Fantastic Four
Marvel actor Chris Evans appeared alongside Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis, and more in 2005’s Fantastic Four. Directed by Tim Story, the movie was based on the superhero team of the same name, and it follows the origins of the team as they navigate their way to finding out that exposure to cosmic rays has given them abilities.
Evans played Johnny Storm, a.k.a. Human Torch, in the movie, and despite the movie being panned by the critics, it performed exceptionally well at the box office, grossing over $333.5 million. (via Box Office Mojo) Over the years, the movie has attained the classic cult status.
A sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer was released in 2007, and where it received mixed reviews from the critics and audience, it grossed about $301.9 million at the box office. In an archival interview, Chris Evans was asked if he was nervous about taking on the role of Johnny Storm, to which he said,
Sure. I mean, you always have that in mind that this is some people’s passion and life. So, you don’t want to screw it up and have them hate you forever. But everyone was going through that; we were all kind of in the same position, so it was nice to have a support group and playoff with that.
In an interview with Comic Book Movie back in 2005, Evans was asked what it was about Johnny Storm that made him want to say YES to the movie. He said it’s nice to play a guy who has energy, as playing a character that’s dark or troubled or scarred can be really tiresome.
He noted that it’s not a fun place to put one’s mind to, but when it comes to Johnny, he is just the antithesis of that. Evans also mentioned that to prepare for his character, he just went out and bought as many comics as he could find to understand what they were doing because a lot of people depend upon these stories and are passionate about them, and none of the team members wanted to be a disappointment.
Chris Evans on reprising Johnny Storm for Deadpool & Wolverine
Evans surprised everyone when it was reported that he’s returning to the MCU, but this time not as Captain America but as Johnny Storm for Deadpool & Wolverine. He wrote,
Thank you to Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, and Shawn Levy for letting me be a part of such an incredible movie. They’re three of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. Special thank you to Ryan for making it all happen. Playing Johnny again was a dream come true, and he’ll always have a special place in my heart.
In an interview with Bam Smack Pow, Chris Evans mentioned that he had hoped that he’d get a chance to suit up as Johnny Storm. He added that with the multiverse, it’s possible, but one has to be very sure that they are respecting the character, as they mean a lot to people and the ones who have previously played. He added it had to make sense for him to reprise it, and it did.
Now, Marvel Studios is preparing to welcome the new Fantastic Four family, which includes Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach.
Quinn takes over the character of Johnny Storm in The Fantastic Four: First Steps and understands that he has the big shoes of Chris Evans to fill in, but he is ready to take the character to the next level.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is scheduled for a July 25, 2025 release.
