Chris Evans Still Remembers The Moment Of Getting The Fantastic Four Phone Call: "I Needed It"

Nowadays, most people who know of Chris Evans know of him as Captain America from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, many of those fans remember the days when Evans was playing the Human Torch in a Fox-owned Fantastic Four Marvel movie, before the days of Iron Man and the Marvel Cinematic Universe's popularity, let alone existence. While Evans has dozens of credits to his acting resume, he remembers the moment when he learned the super hero life was going to be the life for him more than the beginning of most of his other opportunities.

"That was back when the superhero thing was just taking off," Evans said on THR's podcast. "For the most part, this was right on the heels of the Spider-Man with Tobey Maguire and the X-Men, so the super hero thing was just taking off. You try to remember the moments in your life when you get those phone calls to get a job and I'm ashamed to admit that I can't always remember getting those calls but that one I remember. There was a lot of other personal things. I think I had just been dumped. I needed a win. I remember getting that phone call and just thinking, 'Aw, yes!' It was really a role that I enjoyed, it was the best paycheck I had ever gotten. It felt like a little bit of a corner had been turned and maybe I could parlay this into something else."

To this point, Evans had been getting steady work, but nothing he was particularly thrilled for. "I was really lucky in the sense that there was always something," he recalled. "I wasn't locking down giant, giant movies but there was always enough to feel like I could make a living doing this."

At the time, Disney was not yet making Marvel movies. Fantastic Four was a Fox movie but there was one common denominator between Fox's Fantastic Four role for Evans and his Marvel Studios role as Captain America: Kevin Feige. "It was Kevin but he was still working at Fox," Evans said. "He was certainly on the job. He was one of the guys that I really got along with."

Quickly, Evans learned how serious his career and choices would be. "In the beginning you're just happy to be there," Evans explained. "Then, all of the sudden, it just comes into focus that you may only get so many shots at this...It starts to feel a bit heavy and anxiety comes with that."

Do you remember the days of Evans playing the Human Torch? Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them my way on Instagram and Twitter!