Issue Date: July 29, 2007
Fantastic guy
Chris Evans' star is on the rise.
By Kevin Maynard
Don't get Chris Evans started on the love of his life. No, it's not Jessica Biel (the two dated for four years and remain friends, he says). The true object of affection for this tall, tan, blue-eyed hunk is his dog, East.
"He's an American bulldog," Evans says proudly, showing off a picture of the pooch on his cellphone while he has a little downtime on the set of "The Night Watchman." "We do a lot of camping together. We'll take two or three weeks off and drive to campsites like Joshua Tree, Yellowstone and Yosemite. You take care in the little things that you do. Time truly stops."
Not that the Boston native has had much of a chance to hit the great outdoors since he first played the Human Torch in the "Fantastic Four" franchise. Which is fine by him. Not long ago, he was a struggling actor. Complicating matters for this up-and-comer was his relationship with Biel. Before Evans was even a household name, he found himself becoming tabloid fodder.
"You know, Jess and I really stayed out of the public eye," Evans says. "We didn't go to premieres together or go to the Ivy. For the most part, it felt safe. Nobody knew we were dating until we broke up."
His Boston hometown pride keeps him grounded. He lives in the Hollywood Hills with two non-acting pals, one of whom he has known since he was 10. "We're like the 'Entourage' guys," he says.
Two of his prized possessions are a Boston Red Sox jersey signed by Carlton Fisk and a basketball from Celtics star Larry Bird. When told he doesn't have much of a Beantown brogue, he jokes: "Just give me three beers!
"If I could live in Boston right now, I would," Evans says. "In a heartbeat."
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Why he's on our radar: Chris Evans is on fire
Biggest claim to fame: He's the cocky but likable Johnny Storm, aka the Human Torch, in the "Fantastic Four" flicks. "I have several different action figures of myself that look nothing like me," he says. "But my mother has them all. You walk intoher bedroom, and it's like atoy store."
Gravitas: As Mace, the tough-minded engineer of the doomed space shuttle Icarus II, Evans lends gravity to the intergalactic sci-fi thriller "Sunshine," now in theaters. "We flew at zero gravity in little planes, we went scuba diving to get the sensation of weightlessness, and we lived together in a little dorm room," Evans says of the filming. "It was like space camp!"
Next up: He'll romance Scarlett Johansson's budding au pair in fall's The Nanny Diaries. Then he'll play a rookie cop in "The Night Watchman," a modern Los Angeles crime thriller starring Keanu Reeves. "Keanu's an ex-cop who becomes implicated in the murder of a fellow officer," he says. "I'm the detective put in charge of the investigation." -- K.M.
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