In the annals of Hollywood’s blockbuster mishaps, few stories rival the saga of facial hair controversies that have disrupted multimillion-dollar productions. While Henry Cavill’s infamous $3 million mustache became a lightning rod for criticism during the reshoots of Justice League in 2017, it wasn’t the first time a superhero’s grooming choice caused chaos. Years earlier, Chris Evans’ beard posed a significant challenge for the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s The Avengers (2012), a $1.5 billion-grossing juggernaut that redefined superhero cinema. The now-iconic post-credits shawarma scene, a lighthearted capstone to the film’s epic narrative, was nearly derailed by Evans’ facial hair, grown for another role. This little-known story of prosthetic cover-ups, last-minute filming, and creative workarounds offers a fascinating glimpse into the high-stakes world of blockbuster filmmaking, where even a beard can spark a production nightmare.

The Shawarma Scene: A Last-Minute Masterstroke

The Avengers, directed by Joss Whedon, was a groundbreaking achievement, uniting Marvel’s mightiest heroes—Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner)—in a single film. Released on May 4, 2012, it grossed over $1.5 billion worldwide, cementing the MCU as a cultural and financial powerhouse. One of its most memorable moments wasn’t part of the original script: the post-credits shawarma scene, where the battle-weary Avengers gather in a New York diner to enjoy a quiet meal, was added as an afterthought. Filmed just one day after the film’s Los Angeles premiere on April 11, 2012, this impromptu sequence captured the heroes’ camaraderie in a way that resonated with audiences, spawning memes and even inspiring real-world shawarma sales spikes.

However, the scene’s spontaneous creation presented a logistical hurdle. By the time Whedon decided to film it, the cast was deep into other projects, and Chris Evans, who played the clean-shaven Captain America, had grown a full beard for his role in Bong Joon-ho’s Snowpiercer (2013). Unlike Cavill’s later mustache debacle, shaving wasn’t an option for Evans due to Snowpiercer’s production schedule and contractual obligations. “He was shooting Snowpiercer while filming this one, so the beard was probably a contractual obligation,” noted a Reddit user in a 2019 thread discussing the scene. The challenge was clear: how could Whedon maintain Captain America’s iconic look without disrupting Evans’ other commitment?

Prosthetics and Clever Staging

To address the beard issue, the Avengers production team opted for a practical solution: cover Evans’ facial hair with a prosthetic jaw. Executive producer Jeremy Latcham later admitted the results were less than ideal. “If you look closely, we pasted this special-effect skin makeup over it. But it was all bumpy and looked terrible, so we just asked him to lean on his hand to cover it up,” Latcham revealed in a 2021 interview. In the shawarma scene, Evans is noticeably positioned with his hand obscuring part of his face, conveying weariness while conveniently hiding the prosthetic’s flaws. This clever staging, combined with dim lighting and a focus on the ensemble, ensured that most viewers didn’t notice the issue at the time.

The prosthetic jaw was a far cry from the seamless CGI used in later films, and Latcham’s candid assessment—“it looked terrible”—underscored the limitations of the technology available in 2012. Unlike Henry Cavill’s Justice League reshoots, which relied on a $25 million CGI effort to erase his mustache, the Avengers team didn’t have the budget or time for digital wizardry. Instead, they leaned on makeup and camera tricks, a decision that, while imperfect, preserved the scene’s charm. “It’s a testament to how well the scene works that nobody really noticed until years later,” wrote Vishal Kawadkar for FandomWire in 2023, reflecting on the shawarma sequence’s enduring appeal.

Echoes of Cavill’s Mustache Fiasco

The parallels between Evans’ beard and Cavill’s mustache are striking, though the scale and fallout differ. In 2017, Cavill faced a similar dilemma when Justice League reshoots overlapped with his work on Mission: Impossible – Fallout, where he sported a mustache for his role as August Walker. Paramount, the studio behind Fallout, refused to let Cavill shave, citing the impracticality of a fake mustache in close-up shots. “A fake mustache in close-up on a 75mm lens is never going to look like anything but a fake mustache,” director Christopher McQuarrie explained on the Empire Podcast. Warner Bros., desperate to meet Justice League’s release date, spent a reported $25 million on CGI to digitally remove the mustache, resulting in a notoriously shoddy effect that became a meme and a symbol of the film’s troubled production.

Interestingly, Cavill’s mustache was a stylistic choice, not a contractual requirement, decided after he finished filming Nomis with a beard and long hair. “I thought about it for a second and said, ‘You know what, let’s go for it,’” McQuarrie recalled, unaware of the chaos it would unleash. The Justice League VFX team faced a daunting task, as explained by visual effects expert Dave Fleet: “We would need to build a 3D model of the face and then shade the surface of the skin to look realistic… potentially re-animate his mouth.” The result was an uncanny, almost lifeless upper lip that drew mockery online.

In contrast, Evans’ beard issue was resolved with minimal fanfare. The Avengers team’s low-tech approach—prosthetics and strategic blocking—avoided the public scrutiny that plagued Justice League. While Cavill’s CGI mustache removal was lampooned as a $25 million blunder, Evans’ prosthetic jaw remained a footnote, only surfacing in later discussions among eagle-eyed fans and industry insiders. “DC learned the hard way that it doesn’t work,” commented a Reddit user in 2019, comparing the two incidents.

The Broader Context of Superhero Grooming

Both incidents highlight the unique challenges of superhero cinema, where actors often juggle multiple roles across overlapping productions. Evans’ beard in Snowpiercer was integral to his gritty, post-apocalyptic character, just as Cavill’s mustache suited the rugged aesthetic of Mission: Impossible – Fallout. These grooming choices weren’t frivolous; they were tied to the actors’ commitments to their craft. Yet, the clean-shaven ideals of Captain America and Superman, rooted in their comic book origins, clashed with the realities of modern filmmaking schedules.

The Avengers shawarma scene wasn’t the only time Evans’ facial hair caused a stir. By Avengers: Infinity War (2018), his beard became a deliberate character choice, reflecting Steve Rogers’ shift to the Nomad persona after Captain America: Civil War. “There’s a lack of formality,” Evans told USA Today in 2018, explaining how the beard symbolized Steve’s fugitive status. The beard was a social media sensation, generating over 20,000 Twitter mentions within hours of the Infinity War trailer’s debut. However, when Evans shaved it for Avengers: Endgame, directors Joe and Anthony Russo revealed they had planned to keep it longer but scrapped prosthetics due to poor results, echoing the shawarma scene’s issues.

Cavill’s mustache, meanwhile, took on a life of its own, earning its own SlashFilm obituary in 2018 after he shaved it. The controversy even resurfaced in 2024 when Cavill appeared as “Cavillerine” in Deadpool & Wolverine, jokingly noting he “shaved the moustache off for this one” to avoid another CGI debacle. The mustache’s legacy as a Hollywood cautionary tale underscores how even minor decisions can spiral into major headaches.

Lessons from Facial Hair Fiascos

The Evans and Cavill incidents offer valuable lessons for studios. First, scheduling coordination is critical. Both The Avengers and Justice League suffered from overlapping productions, a common issue in the high-stakes world of blockbusters. Second, practical solutions like prosthetics or staging can be effective but require careful execution. The Avengers team’s quick thinking preserved the shawarma scene’s magic, while Justice League’s reliance on CGI backfired spectacularly. Finally, embracing a character’s new look might be wiser than forcing continuity. As fans noted, a bearded Superman, as seen in comics, could have been a bold choice for Justice League, just as Evans’ Infinity War beard reinvigorated Captain America.

A Legacy of Laughter and Resilience

Ultimately, both stories highlight the resilience of filmmakers and actors in the face of unexpected challenges. The Avengers shawarma scene remains a beloved moment, its prosthetic flaws a quirky footnote rather than a dealbreaker. Justice League’s mustache saga, while a bigger misstep, didn’t overshadow Cavill’s career or the success of Mission: Impossible – Fallout. These incidents remind us that even in billion-dollar franchises, human elements—like a beard or a mustache—can spark chaos, creativity, and, in hindsight, a good laugh.

As Hollywood continues to churn out superhero epics, the tales of Evans’ beard and Cavill’s mustache serve as enduring reminders that sometimes, the smallest details can make the biggest waves. For fans, they’re a testament to the passion and ingenuity behind the scenes, ensuring that even when facial hair threatens to steal the show, the heroes—and their films—still shine.