Chris Prattis effectively unavoidable in the modern entertainment industry, whether you care aboutGuardians of the GalaxyandThe Terminal List(andSuper Mario Bros,Garfieldand binge-watching oldParks and Recreationepisodes) or not, but there was a time when that wasn’t the case — even if it seems impossible to remember now. If not for his star-making appearance as Star-Lord in theMarvel Cinematic Universe, he might have stayed as a likable, funny character actor forever, and the whole world would be different. But his audition to play Star-Lord almost never happened.
This is a famous part of the mythology of forming the MCU thatGuardians of the GalaxydirectorJames Gunnhas talked about, but the story is that Gunn didn’t even want to see Pratt for the role. In an appearance onDax Shepard’sArmchair Expert, Gunn explained that he didn’t want to hire “the heavy guy onParks and Rec,” but casting directorSarah Finnset up a meeting without telling him and he knew within “12 seconds” that Pratt was “the one.” That’s only one side of the story, though, andPratt didn’t want to take the meeting either.
Why Did Chris Pratt Almost Pass on ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’?
In an old, propheticinterview withEsquirein 2014(the premise is essentially, “you don’t know who Chris Pratt is, but you will soon”), Pratt explained that he had a bad audition for aG.I. Joemovie that made him refuse to considerGuardians. He said that, halfway through the audition, he “saw the director’s eyes just glaze over,” and he figured it was because he was “out of shape” at the time and that he “did not look like aG.I. Joeaction figure come to life.” He initially turned downGuardians of the Galaxy— before ever meeting with Gunn, presumably — because he said he didn’t want to “embarrass myself” like that again.
Based on theEsquireinterview, it sounds like that (and general health concerns) were the motivation behind getting buff, and not necessarily that big shirtless scene in the firstGuardians. Either way, though,he got in shape, he took the meeting with Gunn, the director took the meeting with him, and now he’s every action hero. It’s not super clear how his success as Star Lord led to him also voicing Super Mario andGarfield, but things seemed to have worked out for him.
Guardians of the Galaxy
