Evans, who played Captain America in Marvel superhero movies for nearly a decade, took on another Avenger, Paul Rudd.
LOS ANGELES – Chris Evans may have put down the Captain America shield, but he’s got a new badge of honor: He’s been named People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive.
The election of the people was announced. Monday night on Stephen Colbert’s late-night show and on the magazine’s website. Evans, who played Captain America in Marvel superhero movies for nearly a decade, takes on another Avenger, Paul Rudd.
“My mom would be so happy,” he told the magazine for its cover story, which hits newsstands Friday. “She’s proud of everything I do but this is something she can really brag about.”
He also knows that he is likely to be teased by close friends. “Really it would just be a point of bullying,” he joked in an interview. “It’s ready to harass.”
Among those likely to heckle him are fellow actors and former Sexiest Man Alive winners such as Rudd, Ryan Reynolds and Chris Hemsworth. (Hemsworth, who plays Thor in the Marvel movies, was the first Avenger to win People’s annual honor, which was first given to Mel Gibson in 1985.)
RELATED: Paul Rudd named People’s Sexiest Man Alive for 2021
Other past honorees include John Legend, Dwayne Johnson, Idris Elba, Adam Levine, Richard Gere, Channing Tatum and David Beckham.
People interviewed Evans, 41, at a Georgia farmhouse, where the actor talked about finding a better work-life balance. “The most enjoyable aspect of my career right now is feeling safe enough to take my foot off the gas,” he said.
Evans’ first film role came in 2000’s “The Newcomers” and he played the superhero Johnny Storm in two “Fantastic Four” films released in 2005 and 2007. “
Since then, he’s played the wholesome superhero in 10 Marvel movies, laying down his shield after saving the universe in 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame.”
Evans has become a highly regarded star, voicing Buzz Lightyear in Pixar’s “Lightyear” and a sadistic killer who tries to kill Reynolds in NextFlix’s “The Gray Man.” Paid – both released this year.
The actor told PEOPLE that he’s thinking about marriage and a family, saying, “It’s exactly what I want.”
He said he did not expect to talk much about his private life publicly. “Some things you want just for you, or just for my family and my friends.”
The Boston native also continues her involvement with urban engagement site A Starting Point, which she Jointly founded in 2020.
As Evans charts the next part of his life and career, he fully expects the People’s honor to be a milestone.
“It’s something that as I get older and I can look back and say ‘I remember again…'” Evans said. “I’m fortunate to be involved in the debate in any capacity.”