‘Ghosted’ Director Explains Why Chris Evans Was ‘Very Aware’ of Not Letting His Action Star Side Come Through (Video)
After nearly a decade of seeing Chris Evans as Captain America in the MCU, it might be a bit of an adjustment to see him be the guy who’s the exact opposite of an action hero in “Ghosted.” But, according to the film’s director, Evans was very meticulous about making sure he was underskilled on screen this time.
The film, now streaming on Apple TV+, follows Cole (Evans) as he tries to find love with Sadie (Ana de Armas) after a pretty perfect spontaneous date. When she appears to be ghosting him, he plans a grand romantic gesture — at least…in his eyes — to show up in London, where he’s tracked her down to using his phone. (Technically, his phone is tracking the smart tag he put on his inhaler, that she just happened to take by accident).
But, as it turns out, Sadie is a spy, and a very skilled one at that — meaning a lot of people want her dead. Now, she must protect Cole to get him back home safely because, as Cole himself exasperatedly points out “I’m a farmer!” He’s not equipped to handle the physical demands of being a spy.
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Of course, knowing Evans as Captain America, fans know he can actually handle that. But Cole, the character, couldn’t, and according to “Ghosted” director Dexter Fletcher, that was an important line to draw.
“He and I were very clear right from the outset — and you got to remember, Chris was a producer on the movie. So he knew very much what he wanted to achieve going in,” Fletcher explained to TheWrap. “And it was just about, in fact, more about like, how can we in fact, amp that up? Not that — you know, when it came to certain fight sequences, he was brilliant and hands-on and had incredible ideas, but [Cole] was more of a spectator.”
Fletcher continued, “I mean, he does have a fight on the jet and, with Mike Moh, there’s a really good fight with him and Mike Moh, I think at the end. But no, he was very aware, like, ‘I can’t emerge too much as that guy.’ And so things like when Ana says to him, ‘Are you ready?’ And he says, ‘For what? No, I’m not ready! Absolutely [not].’ And then she goes, you know, that all comes out, actually, of discussions and fun we’re having on set, and trying to just push that, that envelope even further with Chris.”
Fletcher went on to praise Evans’ comedic timing with Cole, and noted that it was also the actor who vetoed having the character sing during the karaoke scene, despite fans knowing he can sing and dance.
“He’s like, ‘He wouldn’t do it though. We’ve got to show that he’s a man without courage, who doesn’t take risks, and if he gets up there and sings in front of her now, at this early stage, you be like, oh, well he takes risks,'” Fletcher explained.
“You know, we’ve got to make a smart decision. And so I was like, huh, and then Ana goes ‘I’ll do it!’ Even better, OK,” he continued. “And we only use a tiny little bit of it. It was more about how unwilling Chris’s character is to take risks. He’s just risk averse. And that I think, actually in the long run, pays off.”
You can watch TheWrap’s full interview with Dexter Fletcher in the video above.
“Ghosted” is now streaming on Apple TV+.
