Chris Evans Has The #1 Movie On Streaming
Chris Evans is having himself quite a year, as he has been involved in two major releases, one of which happens to hold the #1 spot on streaming.
Actor Chris Evans has had quite a long career of making fans out of audiences looking to be inspired and chuckle at the same time. Known by many who adore the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s plethora of films as “America’s A**,” Evans played the character of Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, throughout the initial run of the MCU. As part of the Avengers crew, Evans helped carry a franchise built for Disney fans throughout the world. After Avengers: Endgame debuted in 2019, Evans hung up his famous shield and said goodbye to the character for good. However, Disney fans were delighted when he returned to the House of Mouse for a go at a popular character named Buzz Lightyear in Lightyear, even if some viewers probably would have preferred the character be voiced by Tim Allen. It looks like Evans may be having the last laugh, though, as Lightyear is making the rounds once again.
According to FlixPatrol, a site dedicated to tracking titles on streaming services worldwide, the Chris Evans-led Lightyear has skyrocketed on the streaming charts to the number one spot on all streaming platforms. The movie debuted in theaters in June 2022 and finally made its way to Disney+ earlier this month. Since then, the movie has enjoyed rapid success in home media via the streamer, as it appears to be the go-to film for families looking for something to watch in the comfort of their own couches. That is terrific news for a movie that unfortunately did not get the box office gross that Disney and Pixar were hoping for when it was released in theaters and IMAX, despite its high-profile cast, name recognition, and nostalgic charm.
Lightyear stars Chris Evans as the titular Buzz Lightyear, a space ranger trapped on a hostile planet along with his crew and trying desperately to figure out a way home. As a spin-off of the Toy Story series of films, Lightyear plays around with space and physics, introducing the theory of relativity to a new generation of moviegoers. It is a movie within a movie, where young Andy from Toy Story would have gone to a theater to see the movie Lightyear, resulting in him wanting to take home a toy version of his favorite space ranger, er, fictional movie hero. Along with Evans, the movie’s voice cast includes Keke Palmer, Taika Waititi, Bill Hader, Uzo Aduba, and James Brolin.
Lightyear has a confusing plot for some kids, to say the least, but one that critics and audiences chose to ignore. Rotten Tomatoes currently ranks the Chris Evans film as Certified Fresh with a 75% on its Tomatometer among 306 critics’ reviews, as well as an 84% Audience Score based on 5,000 verified ratings from users. While fans of the movie flocked to Rotten Tomatoes to air their appreciation for the film, Metacritic users have a different story to tell. Metacritic reflects a Metascore of 60 based on 57 critic reviews, while their User Score rests at 4.1, which typically denotes favorable or mixed ratings from critics and audiences alike.
Even though viewers have taken a liking to a movie that has sprung up to the top spots on Disney+, the film did not fare so well when it was released in theaters. Lightyear grossed nearly $226 million against a budget of $200 million, which is viewed as a box office failure for Pixar and Disney. The movie was most likely seen as a bit discombobulated as a spin-off of a beloved franchise, one that many viewers didn’t think should be messed with. Deadline reports that there was some backlash from moviegoers to the fact that Chris Evans voiced Buzz Lightyear instead of the original toy version that was voiced by comedian Tim Allen in the Toy Story franchise. Since the character is different from the one Allen voiced for decades, Pixar didn’t see anything wrong with the change, but it appears some audiences didn’t love it. Allen himself felt that the character had nothing to do with his version of Buzz Lightyear, so the backlash was most likely not needed. At any rate, Lightyear seems to be rebounding while it’s available via streaming, which is welcome news to Chris Evans and company.
