Captain America shortlist emerges

More superhero news comes today in the shape of Captain America casting.

Apparently Marvel have a six-man shortlist for the role of Steve Rogers aka Captain America. And top of that list seems to be John Krasinski, best known for his appearances in the US The Office , and films like Away We Go , Dreamgirls and Jarhead .

Also in the running are Scott Porter ( Speed Racer , below), Mike Vogel ( Cloverfield ), Michael Cassidy ( Smallville ), Jensen Ackles ( Supernatural ) and Patrick Flueger ( Brothers ).

Other names floating around are Gossip Girl ’s Chace Crawford (who has yet to be invited to complete a screen test) and Tron Legacy ’s Garret Hedlund.

The Hollywood Reporter have revealed that Marvel wants each actor to sign a 30-day hold during the testing. This basically means that the actors can’t sign on to any other movie projects while they’re testing – it’s to stop a repeat of the Ryan Reynolds Deadpool/Green Lantern casting confusion.

The Captain America contract itself will also include a Samuel L Jackson echoing nine-film option, which covers both America and Avengers films as well as other possible spin-offs. As for payment, the initial offer is said to be just $300k.

So, who will Marvel and director Joe Johnston pick? They obviously want to get this right if they’re going to sign somebody on for nine films. Of them all, Krasinski seems the most likely, if unconventional; the others are all either too young or too pretty.

Look out for more news when we get it.

Are any of these guys the new Captain America? Got any better suggestions?