When you have Tony Stark convincing you to be Hulk or Captain America, it does not take much to effort to seal the deal. This was how it went for actors Mark Ruffalo and Chris Evans, who play “Marvel’s the Aveng¬ers’” Bruce Banner/Incredible Hulk and Steve Rogers/Captain America in the upcoming blockbuster where Downey’s Tony Stark/Iron Man is also a main player.
“‘The Avengers’ isn’t the type film that I’ve done in the past or that I am usually invited to do,” confessed Ruffalo in an e-mailed statement from the Marvel flick’s local distributor. “I was a little nervous about it because when Joss Whedon and I first met about the role there wasn’t a script. I thought a lot about Iron Man. I thought about what Robert Downey Jr. did with that part – he is one of my hero actors.”
Buddies in real life, Ruffalo raved over how Downey fleshed out the man in the iron suit: “I really loved what Robert did; he reinvented the genre. It made me feel like I could fit into that world with whatever it is I do. I had one meeting with Joss, who I liked instantly, so between him and Robert I was in.”
“What appealed to both Joss and I about the character is that he would have a common man sort of feel to him and possess this world-weary charm,” said Ruffalo who inherited Hulk after Edward Norton walked away from the part.
“We also agreed he should have a sense of humor about his situation. Based on the last incarnation of The Incredible Hulk, there was the promise that Banner may actually have a little control over the Behemoth. We wanted him to be fun and interesting as Banner and awesome as Hulk.”
Downey seemed to be playing Nick Fury in real life by also getting Evans’ nod to do Captain America. According to Details magazine, Evans “almost walked away from the title role [and it] was Iron Man himself who talked him into accepting the part because, as he told Evans, it would make it easier for Evans to do projects he wanted in the future by making lots of money for the movie studio now.”
It turned out, Iron Man knew better as “Captain America: The First Avenger” went on to be a commercial and critical success.
According to Hong Kong’s Prestige magazine, Evans – who was once a part of the “Fantastic 4” superhero team – was cautious because of other previous project missteps he took prior to “Captain America.”
“I’m surprised by any movie that is successful. At this point I’ve made a lot of films. I’ve made about 20 movies and I’m probably proud of three. I had already made quite a few stinkers. I couldn’t afford to make another one, let alone another one on that scale. If you make one that big and it fails, your days are numbered.”
Evans was, of course, glad to be wrong. “Not only was I extremely happy with how the film (‘Captain America’) turned out, but it was such a fantastic working experience. Everything about it has been a positive. There has not been one negative, and thank God for my team and my family and friends for pushing me [into taking the role]. When I first saw the film, I loved it. I really, really did. I saw it and texted [director Joe Johnston] and said, ‘Thank you so much for giving me something to be proud of.’ When you’re proud of it, you want to talk about it. It made doing the press a lot easier.”
Downey, who has completely taken the hero portrayal out of the box as the wealthy, flamboyant Tony Stark, was described “a tour de force” by producer Kevin Feige.
He added, “He injects that confidence and sense of humor that brought to life and defined the character in the best way possible in both ‘Iron Man’ films. We wanted to give Robert scenes with all the characters as we knew it would be a lot of fun to watch Tony’s interaction with Captain America, Thor and The Hulk. When Robert walks on the screen, the audiences embrace him in a very big and palpable way; he really is a powerhouse for us and the film.”
Downey himself revealed, “Tony initially thinks forming the team is ridiculous, but being Tony Stark, he is more open to the realm of possibilities that exist in the world of ‘The Avengers.’ Tony already had hints of it from Nick Fury who has been stringing him along for a while about becoming part of a larger universe.”
One Avenger who naturally has issues against Stark’s hero-savvy style is Captain America. Evans said, “It’s not just that Captain America wakes up in a whole new world; it’s the fact that he has to deal with the emotions of finding out that everybody he knows is dead. Every single person he called brother on a battlefield is gone and the world around him is a different place. It’s more fast-paced and impersonal because new technologies have put barriers between people.
“In the ’40s there was much more of a direct and honest sincerity in the way people behaved and I think human interaction helps breed manners. Waking up in modern day is just an extremely different way of life that Steve Rogers now has to get used to. Starring as Captain America was scary and exhilarating at the same time. ‘Thor’ had already opened and done very well and so I kept thinking Captain America better open and do well because I don’t want to be the weak link of the ‘The Avengers.’ Luckily the film did well and it was an amazing feeling to see kids’ faces light up when they saw me in the costume. It really was a completely new experience for me, for which I am very grateful.”
But “Avengers” does not end with Downey, Evans and Ruffalo. As most movie fans are aware of, there’s also Samuel L. Jackson who gathers the team as Nick Fury, Scarlett Johansson who reprises the Black Widow from “Iron Man 2,” Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, and Chris Hemsworth as Thor.
(“Marvel’s The Avengers” will assemble in the Philippines on April 25, 2012. The film is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International through Columbia Pictures.)
source: mb.com.ph
