Men Of 'Avengers' Covers May 4, 2012 'Entertainment Weekly'

Coming to theaters May 4... The Avengers. Ruff, bow-wow and Whoot! We've certainly spilled ink previously about the hotties in this flick, including Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Robert Downey Jr.,  and Mark Ruffalo.

The May 4, 2012 cover of Entertainment Weekly obviously understands just what the appeal is, by featuring the men of the movie on its cover. Scarlett Johannson? oh, yawn! *

Wowsah: Chris Evans Covers May 2012 'Details'

Ever-hunky Chris Evans flashes his beautiful baby blues on the cover of the May 2012 Details magazine, with a playful profile that you can read here. This spring, Evans will resurrect his role as Captain America in the ensemble The Avengers, which hits theaters May 4, co-starring Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Robert Downey Jr., as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk.

We've got the full layout from the Details spread, as well as bonus online images... plus additional flashes of dreamy Chris from Details' online video interview, which you can see here. Damn, who needs the magazine... Shucks, The Smoking Nun is more than pleased to present all the Ooh La La one needs. *

Coming May 4: Men In Tights! | 'The Avengers'

Three mega-action-packed adventure flicks are due to hit screens in the coming months: The Amazing Spider-Man (July 3), The Dark Knight Rises (July 20) and The Avengers (May 4). Our money is on the latter pre-Memorial Day screen adaptation of Marvel's classic superhero squad Avengers, which stars yummy Chris Evans as Captain America, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, rugged Robert Downey Jr., as Iron Man, delish Chris Hemsworth as Thor and handsome Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk. Uh, Samuel L. Jackson also gets star billing as Nick Fury.

Director Joss Whedon told MTV that he wants audiences "to feel exhausting and fulfilled. We really put the characters through it, and we want the audience to be with them every step of the way and come out going 'That was an extraordinary experience, and now I want to pay to see it again.'"

I'm getting my popcorn ready. Sounds like a big bowl of fun—and with all those men in tights, who could resist? (Sigh, too bad there's no Ryan Reynolds as The Green Hornet). *

Who Will Be The Smoking Nun's 2011 Sexiest Man Alive?

In 2010, we had a packed roster of nominees for The Smoking Nun's Sexiest Man Alive, including James Franco, Thomas Jane, Chris Evans, Cristiani Rinaldo, Rodiney Santiago, Channing Tatum, retro entry Maxwell Caulfield, Isaaiah Mustafa, Kellan Lutz, Eddie Cibrian and Willam Levy. The victor was sweet Mr. Santiago, with Levy the runner up by a hair. Stand by for the sexy slate of 2011 contenders!

'People' Magazine Deems Bradley Cooper 2011's Sexiest Man Alive

No real complaints here... Bradley Cooper gives great teeth, dazzling blue eyes, complex scrunchy hair, he's funny as hell, a boffo fashionista and leading man in one of the best flicks of the year Limitless. Of course, there is one better choice for 2011... at the bottom of this post.

Other hunk-a-dunks in People's 2011 online teaser (despite the fact the issue is already on newsstands): ever-yumbo Chris Evans and Liam Hemsworth, brother of Thor's Chris...Ryan Kwantan and James Marsden...
...and I took the initiative to add the real Sexiest Mainstream Man of 2011, Joe Manganiello.

Chris Evans Moves Up The Hollywood Ladder With New Flick 'Puncture'

Chris Evans finally achieved superstar celebrity status with Captain America: First Avenger, which has grossed $157 million domestically and $131 million in the foreign market. Before his tights even have a chance to stretch out, Evans' next movie is on the horizon: the Sept. 23 launch of serious courtroom drama Puncture.

The flick, based on a true story, is about an unorthodox, hotshot lawyer who takes on a case about a promising needle-free syringe that protects nurses -vs.- big business, which is against the breakthrough. Somehow, Evans becomes a heroin addict or something in the process.

The plot sounds less interesting than Chris wearing suspenders without a shirt... See these exclusive first screen shots snapped by The Smoking Nun, taken from the preview.

Weekend Box Office: 'Apes' Conquers Box Office Competition

On Saturday, The Smoking Nun took a look at potential box office hits remaining this summer, wondering how riveting Devil's Double, starring Dominic Cooper, might fare. We also proposed that Rise of the Planet of the Apes, starring James Franco and John Lithgow, looked "potentially entertaining."

It turns out that Franco—with lead Andy Serkis (Lord of the Rings), John Lithgow and Frida Pinto—aped the competition, as Planet opened with $54 million—$20 million more than its weekend forecast. Reviews deemed the flick "smart," while CinemaScore audiences gave it a rare A- score. At a cost of $93 million, the film also added $23.4 million in 25 overseas markets, for a total worldwide take of $77.4 million.

The Smurfs logged a second week at No. 2, as parents tried to keep their little rugrats quiet for a couple hours; while sci-fi Western Cowboys & Aliens, with Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford (zzzz), ranked No. 3, also in its second week. Dreadfully cliched Ryan Reynolds/Jason Bateman comedy The Change-Up, opened at No. 4. And at No. 5 is Chris Evans' Captain America: The First Avenger, whose worldwide take is now a robust $143 million, after three weeks release.

And Devil's Double? While 88% of viewers gave it an A rating, the indie film didn't stand a chance, opening at a mere 33 theaters nationwide, compared with Apes' 3,648 venues. Looks like it's considered an "art film," at least for the time being. It's not even showing at my local 12-screen bijou. Sigh...

2011 Summer Movies Last Hurrah... 'Devil,' 'Apes' And 'Crazy, Love'

Damn, here we are in August and I've yet to see but one summer flick at the cinema: Thor, with delish Chris Hemsdale. My list is growing: never made it Bridesmaids; gotta gotta see Chris Evans in Captain America; Crazy, Stupid, Love sounds fantastic with Ryan Gosling (despite weary one-trick pony Steve Carrell)...

But more than any of those, what seems to be the dark horse must-see is Devil's Double, with a breakout performance from Brit actor Dominic Cooper, whom we first discovered as the adorable shirtless boyfriend of Amanda Seyfried in Mamma Mia! and then in a supporting role in the Oscar-nominated An Education.

In Double, Cooper takes a wild ride playing double characters. As Iraqi army lieutenant Latif Yahia, he becomes a de facto member of "the royal family" of Saddam Hussein in 19897 Baghdad, when he’s ordered to become the body double of Saddam's son, the "Black Prince" Uday Hussein, "a reckless, sadistic party-boy with a rabid hunger for sex and brutality." Obviously, madness ensues. Already, there's Oscar buzz for Cooper's performance(s). We'll see how the movie fares at the box office after this weekend's opening.
Above: New York magazine's Aug. 1, 2011 profile, in Mamma Mia! and An Education with Peter Sarsgaard.

Also launching this weekend, which looks potentially entertaining... Rise of the Planet of the Apes, starring James Franco and John Lithgow, said to be neither a sequel nor a prequel. Of course, nobody will ever trump Charlton Heston and Roddy McDowell, but Franco brings intelligence and light to every role he plays... It's certainly a better bet than far-fetched The Change Up, in which Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds reverse bodies and lives. Freaky Friday yet again?

Chris Evans Rules Weekend Box Office With 'Captain America'

I've been waiting months to see Chris Evans' hot bod... I mean, savvy acting skills in the summer's 321084032th superhero flick Captain America: The First Avenger, which hit theaters Friday. Um, I haven't seen it yet.

The movie was tops for the weekend, taking in $65.8M, exceeding expectations and trumping Thor, Green Lantern and X-Men openings. Good for Evans for at last catapulting to Hollywood's A list. He's come a long way from Not Another Teen Movie.

No. 2: It appears all the Harry Potter geeks saw The Deathly Hallows Part 2 when it launched last weekend and scored the biggest opening weekend in history. It fell 72% to $48M. The finale in the series total take so far: $274.1M.

No. 3: Friends With Benefits, starring Justin Timberlake in his first lead role, with Mila Kunis, about how boys and girls always end up having sex. $18.5 million. While Timberlake has shown he's got skillz in his Saturday Night Live skits, I must admit I was duly impressed with his chops in The Social Network. Of course, you never forget that it's J-u-s-t-i-n, but the dude is a natural presence onscreen.

No. 4: Transformerzzzzzzz 3, with $12M; No. 5: Horrible Bosses, $11.7M.

The Delicious Photo Spread Behind GQ's July 2011 Chris Evans Cover

Last week, we shared the yummy July 2011 GQ cover of Chris Evans... Now for the lush, uber-sexy inside spread. His highly anticipated Captain America will finally hit theaters July 22.Evans with Scarlett Johansson at the Spike Men's Awards earlier this month.