A show where celebrities eat absurdly spicy wings doesn't seem like a place for insightful conversation. However, Hot Ones' host Sean Evans brings the heat on the wings and in the questions, revealing tons of fun new facts about fans' favorite MCU actors.
Over its 17 seasons, Hot Ones has interviewed many MCU stars, some handling the heat well, and some truly suffering. The superhero actors' reactions included crying, chugging milk or boba tea, and even improvising a scene with the host, utilizing their tears and pain for dramatic effect. Others, however, seemed unphased or even drunk on the heat.
Tom Holland
Spiderman: No Way Home star Tom Holland claimed to be okay with spicy foods, but the Hot Ones chicken gauntlet proved otherwise. While Holland crawled through the wings that clearly put him in pain, fans learned he loves a carvery at a pub, and accidentally laughed his way out of a role in Star Wars.
Holland, who is strikingly similar to his MCU character, tried all the spice-dampening tricks available to him, chugging milk, "walking it off," and even the mythical sucking on a lemon slice, but to no avail. Poor Holland frequently interrupted himself with cries of pain like "I'm going to be sick," and even pretends to faint while signing off.
Scarlett Johansson
Black Widow star and Avenger Scarlett Johansson loves chicken wings, but not necessarily spicy ones. As she nibbles the hot wings, fans learn she loves Chef Boyardee and close-up magic tricks, but can't remember if memes move or not.
Johansson takes small bites of the hot wings, clearly in pain. By the end, she has tried every heat-mitigation tactic available, even requesting a giant, cold beer and holding Sean Evans' hand for support. Despite obviously not handling the heat, Johanssen ends the episode with laughs through the tears and sweat.
Anthony Mackie
Anthony Mackie, formerly The Falcon and current MCU Captain America, is from New Orleans but claims he doesn't do well with spicy stuff. Instead, he likes his food as bland as possible. As Mackie powers through the discomfort, fans learn he's an avid fisherman and even fished the on-set ponds while filming Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Mackie's tongue and mouth eventually go numb, hindering his ability to answer questions, and he has to go off-camera twice to grab a heat-dampening snack of corn chips. But despite the mid-interview breaks and sweat, Mackie finishes strong, ending with a soliloquy.
Jeremy Renner
The Hawkeye star opened his Hot Ones episode by noting how the set feels like he and host Sean Evans are going to compete or fight, but the only opponents here are the hot sauces! As the MCU's Clint Barton shoots down the hot wings, viewers learn that Renner once played a misbehaving detainee in police training videos, learned close-up magic, and loves Karaoke.
Tough-guy Renner effectively conceals his discomfort until the later sauces. Eventually, though, he tells Evans through sputtering coughs and teary eyes "I have no idea what you're talking about," and is yelling at the hot sauces in his throat like they're dogged assailants.
Simu Liu
Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Simu Liu owns his discomfort with spicy foods saying the smell of the wings was already too spicy for him. As Liu battles through the ten wings, fans learn the importance of short films to the Asian diaspora, that Liu was a terrible accountant, and he even bonds with host Sean Evans over being typecast.
About halfway through the wings, Liu's struggle becomes visually clear. He chugs the water and Boba Guys bubble tea, pounds on the table, and jokes that powering through the pain of these hot wings is a metaphor for persevering in order to achieve one's dreams.
Salma Hayek Pinault
The Eternals star Salma Hayek Pinault enjoys spicy food but was finishing a three-month break from spice and booze at the time of filming. As Hayek relishes most of the wings, fans learned her passion is not acting but rather movies, she once let an octopus "explore" her head while SCUBA diving, and she thinks Frida Kahlo would have been fascinated by multiverse theory.
After a strong start, Hayek then tried "Da Bomb" sauce. She immediately hated it and the remaining sauces, exclaiming gems like "too much pain for too little pleasure," "like an attack on the tongue - like a bad lover," and "it's an insult to the tongue."
David Harbour
The "Red Guardian" of the Black Widow film, David Harbour started out very concerned, but by the end was rather enjoying the thrill of the heat. As the Stranger Things star snacked on the spicy wings, fans found out Harbour greatly enjoys acting opposite Winona Ryder, is fascinated by penguins, and loves cured meat.
Harbour overcomes his spice timidity quickly and manically enjoys all ten wings. He's been sober for years but said he got "drunk on hot wings," and when asked what his favorite cured meat was, mentioned a pepperoni pizza because he couldn't think of any cured meat at the moment. The spice clearly got to him, but he handled it well.
Sebastian Stan
Sebastian Stan, the MCU's Bucky Barnes and Winter Soldier, confessed that he hadn't really had much spicy food in his life before appearing on Hot Ones. Nevertheless, Stan soldiered through the spice, revealing that he always considers the audience to be smart, has lived in big cities his whole life, and would love to make a traveling food show with Anthony Mackie.
Despite a supposed untested spice palate, Stan manages to power through all ten wings without much incident. By the end, he's sniffling and obviously in pain but definitely still in good spirits.
Paul Rudd
Antman star Paul Rudd doesn't shy away from spicy food and, despite some serious spice-induced tears, has a great time on Hot Ones. The shrinking superhero tucks into cauliflower hot "wings" as fans learn he loves cooking with his Big Green Egg and loves British food like tea and crumpets.
Rudd, member of the SNL Five-Timers Club, takes the hot sauces in jovial stride until Da Bomb. Then the tears start flowing, but he still doesn't resort to the milk. He enjoys the spice so much he even finishes with a dab of all the sauces combined, and he and Evans use their spicy pain to fuel an emotional, improvised scene at the end.
Elizabeth Olsen
WandaVision star Elizabeth Olsen underpromised her spice tolerance and then over-delivered a stone-cold episode of Hot Ones. The "Scarlet Witch," set to return in the upcoming Dr. Strange: Multiverse of Madness film, serenely ate hot wings as fans learned she loves auditioning and attended a runway show with Naomi Watts and Jessica Chastain.
Olsen barely seemed phased as she munched the spicy wings, commenting on her favorite subtle flavor notes as if this were any other food show. Da Bomb got the largest reaction from the tranquil actor, which was just her calling it "offensive" and quietly sipping water.