Paul Rudd is announced as PEOPLE's Sexiest Man Alive. Image Source: All News Nigeria
Actor, screenwriter, and producer, Paul Rudd has been named PEOPLE magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive in 2021. The announcement was made during a comedy sketch on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Tuesday. People Magazine has complied a forensically scrutinized sexiness ranking of men across the world since 1985. Last year, Michael B. Jordan was announced as the sexiest man alive.
Paul Rudd made his acting debut in 1991 and has since been in films such as "Clueless," "Romeo+Juliet," "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," and others. On July 1, 2015, Rudd was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. On Hollywood Boulevard's mile-long strip of plaques, he presented the 2,554th star. "I remember strolling this boulevard as a youngster and reading the names and thinking about what so many other millions of people thought about, which is, you know, 'Who's that?'" Paul Rudd remarked at the time.
After the announcement, Paul Rudd told PEOPLE, "I do have enough awareness to know that when people hear that I’d be picked for this, they would say, 'What?'." This is not false humility. Some so many people should get this before me. I am hoping now that I’ll finally be invited to some of those sexy dinners with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Michael B. Jordan. I figure I’ll be on a lot more yachts. I’m excited to expand my yachting life. And I’ll probably try to get better at brooding in really soft light. I like to ponder. I think this is going to help me become more inward and mysterious. And I’m looking forward to that".
"Ant-man", star Paul Rudd is going to helm at Ghostbusters: Afterlife sequel joked about the fact that his friends are going to give him, "so much grief. As they should. I would. I mean, I'm going to lean into it hard. Likewise, I'm going to own this. I'm not going to try to be like, 'Oh, I'm so modest.' I'm getting business cards made. But all of my friends will destroy me, and I expect them to. And that's why they're my friends."
Mark Ruffalo, a Marvel co-star, and a friend took to social media to congratulate his friend, who was recently named the sexiest man alive. He shared a GIF of the two and captioned the picture, "Is that Paul Rudd... # SexiestManAlive?! I knew this would come. Congrats man. I hope you continue to never age, so you can continue to hold this title". Paul Rudd’s friend Seth Rogen also took to his Twitter to comment, "No arguments here." Meanwhile, fellow cast member Jane Lynch expressed that the title was long overdue, tweeting, "Ummm... yeah" with an eye-roll emoji. However, director Judd Apatow needed more time to process the news, writing, "I have mixed emotions about this."
Ryan Reynolds also shared his advice for the newly announced sexiest man alive and said; "This opportunity will be wasted on Paul Rudd, like so many before him. He is going to play it shy. He is going to play it bashful, humble. If I knew what I know now, I wouldn't do that. You got to seize this opportunity. I'm not saying I would leave my family, but they would need to go on without me. I would roam the world clutching my dog-eared People Magazine, going from town to town, and sowing my wild oats like some sort of nude, magical gardener. It would be amazing. Don’t blow this, Rudd. If you’re there, do not blow this opportunity. Run like the wind."
Talking about his wife Julie Yaeger’s reaction to her husband being announced as the Sexiest Man Alive in 2021, Paul Rudd said that she was ‘stupefied’, adding that she was very sweet about it. The actor added, "After some giggling and shock, she said ‘Oh, they got it right. And that was very sweet. She was probably not telling the truth, but what’s she going to say?" The couple got married in 2003 and has two children, Jack Sullivan and Darby.
Paul Rudd's sexiness has reportedly increased after his appearance as Ant-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He also played Mike Hannigan, Phoebe Buffay's husband, on the hit television program FRIENDS, and quickly became one of the show's most popular characters. Harrison Ford was 56 when he was named the sexiest man alive in 1998, and Sean Connery was 59 when he was named the sexiest man alive in 1989, so Paul Rudd isn't the oldest sexiest man alive ever.
Paul Rudd and Lisa Kudrow in FRIENDS. Image Source: News.com
Paul Rudd also claimed that working out with Chris Hemsworth for Marvel Universe's Avengers: Endgame made him wonder why he bothered to train. The actor remarked, "I remember on the set of 'Endgame,' I was working out so hard, eating so well, and training like an athlete for so long, and I stood next to Chris Hemsworth and thought, 'What's the point?' Why bother trying when there's that." Since 2011, Chris Hemsworth has played Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Both stars participated in the blockbuster film "Endgame," albeit he's wearing a fat suit as his character gained weight dominated Hemsworth’s screen time. However, based on photographs released on social media by Chris Hemsworth, it appears like the God of Thunder will return to his ripped figure for the upcoming fourth "Thor" film, "Thor: Love and Thunder."
Paul Rudd, Scarlett Johanson, and Chris Hemsworth at the premiere of "Avengers: Endgame". Image Source: Zimbio
The Stuttering Association for the Young (SAY), a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting young people who stammer, counts Paul Rudd as a supporter. On January 22, 2018, Paul Rudd hosted the organization's 6th Annual All-Star Bowling Benefit. Paul Rudd told Vanity Fair that after playing a stuttering character in a play, he became an advocate for stuttering awareness. Paul Rudd is also the founder of The Big Slick, a celebrity-studded sports-themed charity event hosted in Kansas City every June to benefit Children's Mercy Hospital.
John Legend, Dwayne Johnson, Chris Hemsworth, Idris Elba, Adam Levine, Channing Tatum, and David Beckham are among the awardees. Paul Rudd is currently starring in the Apple TV Plus series "The Shrink Next Door," which will launch on November 12. He's also excited about Ghostbusters: Afterlife being released. In addition, in the next film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the actor will reprise his Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) role of Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man.
