Chris Evans Vs. Ryan Gosling: 5 Performances From Each Actor That Prove They Are Ready To Face Off In The Gray Man

Netflix recently announced it struck a deal with the Russo Brothers, the duo responsible for directing the highest-grossing movie of all time – Avengers: Endgame. The two also directed Endgame‘s predecessor, Infinity War. While the brothers won’t be bringing the MCU to Netflix, they’re doing the next best thing: making an assassin thriller with Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans.

In the film, entitled The Gray Man, Ryan Gosling is set to play a CIA operative named Court Gentry. Chris Evans will play Lloyd Hansen, the film’s main antagonist. Rumor has it The Gray Man is being produced for $200 million, making it Netflix’s most expensive movie to date. Good thing Gosling and Evans are coming into the project with plenty of relevant acting experience.

10 Chris Evans: Ransom Drysdale In Knives Out (2019)

Chris Evans perfects the smug, handsome jerk in Rian Johnson’s entertaining whodunit, Knives Out. Ransom is the grandson of  Harlan Thrombey, a famous crime novelist who dies under mysterious circumstances on his 85th birthday.

Ransom is one of many potential culprits in this dark comedy about classism, privilege, and murder. Evans makes one believable playboy in the film, a spoiled manchild who rocks Aran sweaters and eats spiced cookies.

9 Ryan Gosling: Stephen Meyers In The Ides Of March (2011)

As Stephen Meyers in George Clooney’s political drama The Ides of March, Ryan Gosling plays an ambitious, young campaign manager for an aspiring presidential candidate. Clooney plays Pennsylvania Governor Mike Morris, Meyers’s boss.

As Meyers progresses through Morris’s campaign, he discovers the dark nature of politics. Gosling is a dynamic actor, and he proves his ability to play a genuine, well-intentioned protagonist in The Ides of March.

8 Chris Evans: Curtis In Snowpiercer (2013)

Chris Evans is slated to play a bad guy in The Gray Man, but his role in Bong Joon-ho’s impressive, train bound science fiction feature shows Evans knows how to shine in thought-provoking action movies.

A dystopian tale, Snowpiercer involves a lower-class uprising on board the eponymous train, which contains the few remaining members of the human species. Curtis, Evans’s character, leads the rebellion against the train’s elites, who live in luxury while the rest live in squalor.

7 Ryan Gosling: Driver In Drive (2011)

Stylish and moody, Nicholas Rinding Refn’s Drive is a neo-noir drama about a Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver for heisters. Gosling plays the stuntman, simply referred to as Driver, managing to give the character nuance and depth with little dialogue.

Gosling’s acting skills in Drive testify to his ability to communicate through body language. It’s also a testament to the actor’s ability to play more complicated heroes in films – which will definitely come in handy for The Gray Man.

6 Chris Evans: Mrs. Freezy In The Iceman (2012)

The Iceman is based on the life of notorious hitman Richard Kuklinski, a native New Jersian suspected of killing hundreds of people for the mob. Michael Shannon plays Kuklinski, and Chris Evans co-stars as another hitman: Robert ‘Mr. Freezy’ Pronge.

Set in the 1960s, the film details the events leading up to Kuklinski’s eventual arrest. Evans plays up the sleaze factor with his portrayal of Mr. Freezy, a freelancer who uses an ice cream truck business as a front.

5 Ryan Gosling: Neil Armstrong In First Man (2018)

If Gosling can take on playing Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the Moon, the actor can handle playing a big-budget movie CIA operative in The Gray Man. A stunning, thoughtful biopic, First Man traces the events in Armstrong’s life leading up to the Apollo 11 mission – wherein Armstrong traversed the Moon.

Damien Chazelle, known for La La Land, directed First Man. Claire Foy, Kyle Chandler, Christopher Abbott, and Patrick Fugit co-star.

4 Chris Evans: Lucas Lee In Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010)

In Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Chris Evans plays one of Ramona Flowers’s seven evil exes, all of whom challenge the title character to a fight – a fight Scott must win in order to earn Ramona’s love. Michael Cera plays the title character, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Ramona.

As Lucas Lee, Evans dons a chin strap and a leather jacket. Lee, a Hollywood actor and skateboarder, is the second of Ramona’s exes to challenge Scott. Scott, inevitably, defeats Lee. Who knows how much of a butt-kicking Evans will take in The Gray Man, but he (and his stunt doubles) know how to keep it entertaining.

3 Ryan Gosling: Lars Lindstrom In Lars And The Real Girl (2007)

Perhaps Ryan Gosling’s most darkly funny film, Lars and the Real Girl tells the story of a troubled, lonely man who falls in love with a sex doll. There’s a real vulnerability to Gosling’s performance here, one fueled by subtle humor and genuine feeling.

While The Gray Man won’t be as heady or weird as Lars and the Real Girl, it’s liable to contain those raw acting abilities Gosling is known for – as well as his quirky playfulness.

2 Chris Evans: Captain America From The MCU (2011 – 2019)

It doesn’t get much more epic than playing Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, on the big screen. Chris Evans’s recurring role as the leader of the Avengers shows the actor has what it takes to keep superhero movie fans content.

There’s no doubt Evans fans will be tuning into The Gray Man. It doesn’t hurt that the Russo Brothers and Evans are already tight, thanks to the siblings’ work on the last two Avengers movies.

1 Ryan Gosling: K In Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

Denis Villeneuve’s ambitious follow-up to Ridley Scott’s sci-fi noir Blade Runner is noted for its slow pacing, gorgeous visuals, and ambiance. While 2049 didn’t do well in theatres, it was a critical success. Ryan Gosling shines as K, an enslaved replicant forced to work for the LAPD as a hunter of rogue replicants.

K is a troubled and complicated protagonist, a being desirous of independence and identity – both of which have been stripped from him. There’s no doubt Gosling will bring the same pathos and finesse to The Gray Man.

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