Ladies and Gentleman, 'Captain America'

Earlier this year, just before the summer I believe, we were treated to some really cool concept art for Captain America: The First Avenger and it really seemed to give fanboys and fangirls a small taste of what the film might be: a period superhero film bustling with plenty of action and adventure.

Director Joe Johnston knows how to film action (Jurassic Park III and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids). Writing-team Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (The Chronicles of Narnia films) know how to bring an epic fantasy to life. While Johnston has not directed any of my favorite films, this material seems custom suited for his talents.

Soon we started to learn the names of those attached to the film: Hugo Weaving (the Red Skull), Stanley Tucci (Abraham Erkisne), Tommy Lee Jones (Colonel Chester Phillips), and Toby Jones (Arnim Zola). The movie has quite a pedigree. Initially I thought Chris Evans as Captain America seemed a bit young and perhaps didn’t fit what I thought Cap should look like. That was until the first set photos appeared of a bulked up Evans looking extremely Steve Rogers-like. This guy has been transformed into the First Avenger.

The rest of the cast signals that this isn’t just a Captain America movie—they’re bringing his whole damn universe to the screen: Dominic Cooper (Howard Stark), Neal McDonough (“Dum Dum” Dugan), Sebastian Stan (“Bucky” Barnes), Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter), and Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury). And lest we forget all those cool pictures of Hydra agents and weaponry. This movie is beginning to feel really big.

Today, Entertainment Weekly released a swarm of photos to whet our appetite for some good ‘ol American adventure. The cover (above) is an extremely cool picture of Evans as Cap without his mask and holding his war-torn shield. Goose-bump worthy. The issue, which hits stands tomorrow, is full of photos of the some of the rest of the cast and a sneak-peek feature on the making of the film (which is currently shooting and will arrive in theaters on July 11, 2011).

I must say, I am really excited for the next couple of years of comic book films. Marvel and DC are pulling out all of their big guns to either kick off or continue some pretty enormous franchises. Enjoy the new pics!