Chris Evans stars in Puncture, out today.

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Chris Evans' newest role as a drug-addled lawyer is more anti-hero than superhero. Fresh off his Captain America summer, Evans plays Mike Weiss, a brilliant lawyer taking on the health care and pharmaceutical industry even as he struggles with drug addiction. Based on a true story, Puncture follows Evans as Weiss, who along with his partner Paul Danziger, take on what starts out as a small personal injury case for a nurse who was stuck with a contaminated needle. Eventually what began as a minor case morphs into an all-consuming crusade for Weiss. While Evans has mainly been regulated to action and comedic roles in the past, in Puncture he radiates the manic intensity of man who is both dazzlingly smart and also self-destructive. Directed by brothers Adam Kassen and Mark Kassen (who also plays Danziger onscreen), the duo was inspired to make the film after meeting with the actual Danziger who described his partner Weiss as a "madman, genius, playboy, fool and lawyer."

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Although Evans faced serious pressure taking on the iconic Captain America role, the actor found that portraying an actual person had its own challenges. "Puncture is tricky because it's a true story," said Evans. "You might not reach the masses; it might not have the same ripple effect [as Captain America], but to a very select few it's the world and that's pressure, that's terrifying." Though it was intimidating to play a real person, he never doubted the role, "In the first twenty pages I got on my feet and started doing lines," said Evans. "In some movies you just want to say the words...I just wanted to play him."

While Weiss' drug use is a prominent feature in the film, Evans found Weiss' incredible intellect to be more of a hook. "This guy was brilliant—he was something else," said Evans. "Every person that I talked to just said he was the smartest guy they knew." That brilliance was the key to understanding his drug use and translating his manic and occasionally frustrating personality on screen. "Anytime you have someone that clever there's a level of isolation," describes Evans. "People who are that smart, there's a selfishness that goes along with it. That brilliance is a burden and they may leave people in their wake, often times unintentionally."

Before this summer, Evans was probably best known for being the go-to guy for comic relief bringing levity to films such as The Fantastic Four and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. For Evans, the fact that he's considered a comedic actor is a little unbelievable. "I'm a head case. So I'm always going to be a little uncomfortable in everything," said Evans. "I don't think I'm funny in my life. Within my group of friends I'm not the funny guy, I'm the audience."

Being in the audience does have its perks, as Evans admits he has picked up a few things. "I know what funny looks like so I can impersonate it," said Evans. "I know what it's supposed to sound like and if you tell me what to say I can make it sound like my own."

In Puncture, Evans still manages to give his character charisma and a lightheartedness that's unexpected in a hard-hitting story about drug addiction and corruption. The ability to infuse an important message with entertainment was one of the main reasons Evans signed on. "Not only did I like the character and the script and the story and the directors, but there was a message there," said Evans. "It was kind of like killing two birds with one stone."

Evans, however, doesn't think that Weiss, who died in 1999, would be particularly impressed that Captain America was playing him on the big screen. "I don't think he would bat an eye at this. I think he would see it come and see it go and he would be on to the next problem."

Puncture hits theaters today.

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