Since stepping out of his iconic Marvel role as Captain America, Chris Evans has been crafting an exciting new era for himself as an actor. After hanging up the shield, the actor memorably took on the role of Ransom Drysdale in Rian Johnson’s Knives Out. Even though the filmmaker has assembled a whole new cast for the Knives Out sequel, it looks like Johnson and Evans are reuniting for an upcoming movie that will see Evans portraying Gene Kelly.
Chris Evans is a proud fan of musical theatre, and he’ll soon make his movie musical debut in the Little Shop of Horrors remake. Additionally, the actor is reportedly getting ready to portray Singin’ in the Rain actor Gene Kelly in an untitled film, per Deadline. Evans had an original idea for a movie that follows a 12-year-old boy who is working on the MGM lot in 1952 and begins to create an imagined friendship with the Hollywood legend. Rian Johnson and Evans are producing the project together.
The movie is currently in early development and without a studio attached to it, but John Logan, the screenwriter behind The Aviator, Skyfall and Sweeney Todd, is set to write the script. Additional producers Mark Kassen and Ram Bergman, both of which have worked with Chris Evans prior, are also onboard for this unique Gene Kelly movie.
Gene Kelly was a Hollywood icon of the ’40s and ’50s, well noted for his work in musicals such as An American In Paris, On The Town, Brigadoon and It’s Always Fair Weather. The actor is often credited for making ballet a commercial norm in movies, as well as influencing movies like La La Land. He was known for his accomplished dance skills, which he started practicing at the age of eight. He got his start on Broadway in the ’30s before signing a contract with MGM, beginning with For Me and My Gal in 1942, which he starred in with Judy Garland.
This Chris Evans-led movie would be set at the time of An American in Paris and Singin’ in the Rain, which came out in 1951 and 1952, respectively. Gene Kelly was a co-director, lead and choreographer for the pair of films prior to Hollywood musicals seeing a decline just a few years later. I imagine Evans would bring in his vocal skills for the role, along with taking dance lessons to portray the legendary actor. It could come to be one of the actor’s most demanding and most beloved roles if placed in the right hands.
Along with this developing project, Chris Evans is set to voice the role of Buzz Lightyear in Pixar’s upcoming Lightyear, and he’ll also star alongside Ryan Gosling in the Russo Brothers spy action film The Gray Man.