Rudd, 52, whose career stretches back 30 years, seemed taken aback at the honour, as was his wife.

“I do have an awareness, enough to know that when people hear I’d been picked for this, they would say, ‘What?'” he told “People” in a cover story.

“She was stupefied,” he said, describing the reaction of Julie, his wife of 18 years.

“After some giggling and shock, she said, ‘Oh, they got it right.’ And that was very sweet.”

Rudd played the kind boyfriend of Lisa Kudrow’s wacky Phoebe on the television comedy “Friends”, and later took on larger roles in comedies like “Knocked Up” before playing Ant-Man in the Marvel superhero movie.

This was followed by a sequel and appearances as the character in “Captain America: Civil War” and “Avengers: Endgame”.

Rudd, who has two children, will next appear in “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” and in the Apple TV+ series “The Shrink Next Door”.

Actor Michael B Jordan was last year’s pick for sexiest man alive, following John Legend and Idris Elba in 2019 and 2018.

Rudd joked he expects his life to change radically now that he has received the annual title.

“I’m hoping now that I’ll finally be invited to some of those sexy dinners with Clooney and Pitt and B Jordan,” he said.

“And I figure I’ll be on a lot more yachts.”