Chris Evans has a new TV series and is readying a political project

It would be hard to find anyone who knew Chris Evans, when he was growing up in the western suburbs of Boston, that would be surprised to find out he became an actor. His mom is the director of Concord Youth Theatre, where Evans, 38, got his first taste of stage work when he was 9. He stuck with it through high school, moved to New York to study the craft, and landed some TV and movie work (in shows - "Opposite Sex" - and films - "Not Another Teen Movie" - you might have missed). And he kept getting work, in parts ranging from hot-headed, scene-stealing Johnny Storm in "Fantastic Four" to the quietly frightening Mr. Freezy in the somber murder film "The Iceman." The role of Captain America made him a star, but Evans continues to try out different kinds of characters, from the concerned and loving uncle of a young math prodigy in "Gifted" to the enigmatic Ransom Drysdale in "Knives Out."

Evans shows off his dramatic sides in the new Apple TV+ series "Defending Jacob," playing Andy Barber, opposite Michelle Dockery as his wife Laurie, and Jaeden Martell as their son Jacob, who is accused of killing a high school classmate. The eight-episode series also delves in Andy's dark past.