When you hear the name Chris Evans, Captain America might be the first thing that comes to mind for many, but this versatile actor has a lot more in his repertoire than just superhero flicks. In 2013, he took on the lead role in a science-fiction film that garnered an impressive 4.5 out of 5 stars from us!
“Snowpiercer” marked Bong Joon-ho’s Hollywood debut, following his directorial successes like the monster hit “The Host” (2006) and the groundbreaking “Parasite,” which became the highest-grossing South Korean film of all time five years later. In this post-apocalyptic action film, a colossal 1001-car train hurtles across a desolate world, serving as a moving ark designed to sustain life amid the ruins. However, onboard, a strict class system fuels simmering tensions.
Starring alongside Chris Evans are luminaries such as Tilda Swinton, Octavia Spencer, Jamie Bell, and Ed Harris. Yet, in an interview with GQ, Evans candidly admitted that he initially had trouble wrapping his head around the film’s concept:
“When I first read the script, I didn’t quite grasp it,” confessed Evans, who recently appeared in Netflix films like “The Gray Man.” “But I told myself, ‘So what?’ When a movie constructs its own world, it’s always creating a completely new environment. You just have to tell yourself, ‘Okay, everyone accepts it now; this is the norm.'”
For Evans, it meant acquainting himself with the film’s unique world and its rules. Despite his initial confusion, he was immediately won over, and it all came down to the man sitting in the director’s chair. “Bong is a visionary,” Evans praised in the interview. “When you work with someone who knows exactly what they want, even if it’s not exactly what you’d envision, it builds trust. And as an actor, the most important thing is to trust the director.”
While “Snowpiercer” didn’t achieve blockbuster status at the box office, with a final tally of $86 million against a $40 million budget, it garnered critical acclaim and even spawned a namesake television series, for which Bong served as an executive producer. All three seasons of the series, like the film, are currently available for streaming on Netflix.
With “Okja” (2017), another English-language film produced by Netflix, Bong continued to make his mark before delivering his cinematic masterpiece, “Parasite” (2019), earning him widespread recognition and acclaim.