Chris Evans may be his generation’s Henry David Thoreau.
The actor tells the May issue of Details that he’s often dreamed of a life of solitude, far away from the blinding lights of Hollywood. In fact, his desire to be one with nature nearly stopped Evans from agreeing to play Captain America — arguably one of the biggest roles of his career.
Evans, 30, recalls: “What if the movie comes out and it’s a success and I just reject all of this? What if I want to move to the f-cking woods?”
The Boston native continues: “For a long time all I wanted for Christmas were books about outdoor survival. I was convinced that the woods were calling me. I camped a lot, I took classes. At 18, I told myself if I don’t live in the woods by myself by the time I’m 25, I have failed.”
When he’s alone in the woods, Evans feels most like himself. “I’m a lunatic,” he says. “I sing. I dance. I do crazy sh-t.”
Evans loves what he does for a living, “but my happiness in this world, my level of peace, is never going to be dictated by acting.”
The actor admits that he gets extremely uncomfortable when it comes to red carpet events, high-profile interviews and movie auditions.
“Do you know how badly I audition? Fifty percent of the time I have to walk out of the room. I’m naturally very pale, so I turn red and sweat. And I have to literally walk out. Sometimes mid-audition,” Evans explains. “You start having these conversations in your brain. ‘Chris, don’t do this. Chris, take it easy. You’re just sitting in a room with a person saying some words. This isn’t life. And you’re letting this affect you? Shame on you.'”
Evans — who “had a big poster” of Sandra Bullock in his childhood bedroom — also tells Details he’s still searching for The One. “I like wet hair and sweatpants. I like sneakers and ponytails. I like girls who aren’t so la-di-da. L.A. is so la-di-da,” he says. “I like girls who give me a hard time, bust my chops a little.”