Much has been made about the casting of Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm/The Human Torch in THE FANTASTIC FOUR reboot coming from CHRONICLE director Josh Trank, some of it negative, some of it postive. But, what does the most recent actor to play the character have to say about Jordan’s casting? Chris Evans, who played the character in both the 2005 film FANTASTIC FOUR and the 2007 sequel FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER discussed his feelings on “passing the torch” to Jordan, saying:
“It’s so funny, you almost feel precious over the role that you don’t want someone else to do it. But when you hear someone phenomenal is doing it, it’s very exciting like you almost can’t wait.”
Evans went on to praise Jordan, while still feeling a bit nostalgic about the role:
“I couldn’t even give that guy any advice if I wanted, that guy is so good. It’s exciting to see what he’s going to do, because I know he’s going to reinvent it in a way that I could never have imagined. It’s almost like we’re sharing, the character is ours. I feel like I’m connected with him in a way, It’s a nice feeling.”
Although Evans himself seems to have grown weary of the acting trade and set his sights on the directing chair he still seems genuinely enthused about the roles he’s played, be it The Human Torch or Captain America. Evans is set to don the red, white, and blue for three more Marvel films, including the currently shooting AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON. Jordan, too, is now locked into the multi-picture shuffle, as he is set to star in the new reboot and already planned sequel to THE FANTASTIC FOUR.
THE FANTASTIC FOUR opens in theaters on June 19, 2015.