As the controversy over who will play the Captain escalates, while we finally near production, the time has come to compare the likeness of our Captain with his potential portrayers.
In my opinion the Cap must have blonde hair and blue eyes, which is easy to fix with dye and contacts, so that particular way of narrowing down this lot is out.
Steve Rogers is caucasian. While certain liberties can and will be taken with character's ethnic backgrounds, a.k.a. Kingpin played by Michael Clarke Duncan (which I was fine with and actually liked), Steve Rogers should be white (again, only my opinion).
Steve Rogers is 6'2 and 240 pounds according to the Official Guide to the Marvel Universe. So a certain standard for the Cap's build is a must. I would say the actor should be 6' tall at least, but I know that Hollywood can do wonders with height. But if the actor is 5'10, he will be wearing 4 inch go go boots, aka, Brandon Routh gogo boots. And a decent athletic build is a must, a must.
Next is age. Rogers was born in 1917 and went through the super soldier experiment in 1940-1941 at the age of 23-24 years old. In April of 1945 Steve Rogers is 'frozen'. He was 28. So in my opinion the actor must beo older then 35, especially since this actor will portray him three times over a span of probably 7 years (making the actor 42).
He is Captain America, so only an american accent, and that is a must! I do not care if the actor is from frickin' Mars as long as his american accent is flawless. So you foreign hopefuls, get that accent down or get gone!
Next is charisma and caliber. The actor who plays the Cap will be sharing screen time with the likes of Sam Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., Edward Norton (maybe), and Stan Lee! So an unknown is highly unlikely. Even a slightly unknown is unlikely. This is the Captain, he has to be cooler then Jackson, more endearing, likeable, and strong as RDJ, more personally relatable then Norton, and more of a physical presence then the imposing Hemsworth.
When I went through all 'MY' criteria it knocked off the first 8 contenders with my age catergory. Then off went Worthington and Skarsgard with the accents. With the actor notoriety and ability to compete with the other Avenger cast and the believability that these other actors/characters would follow him knocked off McPartlin and Lutz with very little exposure (almost no one would know them), Ackles is too small of a name to compete (Even though I love him and would love to see him have a go as the Cap), Channing usually has the charisma of a dollar store double a battery, a low charge initially that fades to nothingness, but such a small charge to begin with almost no change was noticeable.
After having done this it would seem that the two contenders would be Leonardo DiCaprio and Chris Pine. Both have the charisma and presence to hold sway over the formidable Avenger cast. Both have quite a draw, with the ladies, with their own cult followings, and with their acting skill. Both have the ability to be physically daunting as the Cap. But in the words of the immortal Yoda, there is another. Sam Worthington is the only other member of this list to have a chance. The only thing that stands in his way is his accent, and he would be neck and neck with the other two.
So there you have it, the three only contenders from this list(albeit it is completely possible a different un named actor could get the shoe in, but he will still need to meet the criteria)
Leonardo DiCaprio: a proven actor, with a several critically acclaimed roles and films to his name with more draw power then the opther two who would lend this role and character more credibility then the others mentioned
Chris Pine: an actor that has soared to new heights with Star Trek, making his a house hold name, but his one trick pony movie may shut him down
Sam Worthington" the Golden boy and go to boy of Hollywood. Could easily be picked because of his track record with Terminator's Marcus Wright, Avatar, and the upcoming Clash of the Titans
Steve Rogers/Captain America height:6'2 hair:blonde eyes:blue weight:240
Here is what seems to be the top sixteen contenders for the shield.
Brad Pitt age:46 height:5'11 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Mark Valley age:45 height:5'11 hair:blonde eyes:blue
John Barrowman age:42 height:5'11 hair:brown eyes:blue
Will Smith age:41 height:6'2 hair:black eyes:black
Matt Damon age:41 height:5'10 hair:brown eyes:blue
Jeremy Renner age:39 height:5'10 hair:brown eyes:brown
Jason Lewis age:38 height:6'1 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Jason Statham age:37 height:5'10 hair:brown eyes:hazel
Leonardo DiCaprio age:35 height:5'11 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Ryan McPartlin age:34 height:6'1 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Sam Worthington age:33 height:6'2 hair:brown eyes:blue
Alexander Skarsgard age:33 height:6'4 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Jensen Ackles age:31 height:6' hair:brown eyes:hazel
Channing Tatum age:29 height:5'11 hair:brown eyes:green
Chris Pine age:29 height:6' hair:brown eyes:blue
Kellan Lutz age:24 height:6'1 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Compared to the potential Avenger Cast
Tony Stark/Iron Man:
Robert Downey Jr. age:44 height:5'9 hair:brown eyes:brown
Nick Fury:
Samuel L. Jackson age:61 height:6' hair:black eyes:black
James Rhodey'War Machine:
Don Cheadle age:45 height:5'8 hair:black eyes:brown
Thor:
Chris Hemsworth age:26 height:6'3 hair:blonde eyes:blue
Natasha Romanof/Black Widow:
Scarlett Johansson age:25 height:5'3 hair:blonde eyes:green
(MAYBE) Bruce Banner/Incredible Hulk:
Edward Norton age:40 height:6'1 hair:brown eyes:green