Pratt earns the right to say no
LOS ANGELES — There’s not much time for daydreaming when your life is as mapped out as Chris Pratt’s.
In less than three years, Pratt has gone from underdog to movie star, with fortuitously timed leading roles in three of Hollywood’s most promising franchises: Guardians of the Galaxy, Jurassic World and The Lego Movie. With global box office receipts for the three films approaching $2.9 billion US, all wildly surpassed expectations and spawned plans for sequels.
Pratt is busy promoting Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, out May 5, finishing scenes in Avengers: Infinity War, gearing up for the Jurassic World sequel and eyeing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on the horizon.
For the 37-year-old actor, it couldn’t have come at a better time. It wasn’t too long ago that Pratt and his wife, Mom actor Anna Faris, could be freer with their choices.
“For the first part of our relationship, we put our careers at the top,” Pratt said. “We were like: ‘Honey, if you get a job and you have to go to Istanbul for six months, you’re going. I’ll help you pack. I’ll Skype with you every day. You’re living your dream, I’m living my dream.’ ”
Now, they’ve got their fouryear-old son, Jack, to consider and having a handle on the next few years is helpful. They can plan where they will be from month to month and which jobs make sense — a luxury not often afforded in the capricious world of acting. It also means saying no to a lot.
“There is no big role that Chris doesn’t pass on because there’s no one that doesn’t want Chris in their movie because he truly is the biggest movie star in the world right now,” Guardians franchise director James Gunn said. “He’s not going to say that, but that’s the truth. He gets to do what he wants.”
Pratt has ambitions outside of the blockbuster genre. He has written a script (but not necessarily for public consumption) and would like to eventually direct something he’s written. One of his goals, to tell the stories of bluecollar America, got him into trouble recently after he told Men’s Fitness magazine the group is under-represented in Hollywood movies.
A barrage of snarky headlines and tweets followed from many wondering why he might think that. Soon after, social-media savvy Pratt tweeted that it was a “pretty stupid thing to say.” Pratt just wants to make the people around him happy and comfortable, whether it’s on set, or through a tweet.
Before the controversy, the genial Pratt said that one of his strengths is being able to come into a situation with “a contagious attitude worth catching.”
He has the easy coolness of someone who is proud of his latest work and is comfortable in the spotlight. Guardians of the Galaxy, about Marvel’s intergalactic misfits, was also once an underdog that not only exceeded hopes when the first one was released in 2014, but then, instead of lazily coasting on goodwill, hit its stride in the sequel, which may surprise audiences with its touching emotional core.
For Pratt’s character, the roguish Star Lord/Peter Quill, it means meeting his real father for the first time, Ego (Kurt Russell), while considering the tough-love upbringing of his de-facto father figure, Yondu (Michael Rooker) — someone who reminded Pratt of his own dad.
In his 17-year career in film and television, Pratt has dipped into many genres, allowing him room to hone his craft in different corners of storytelling.
He has acted in sitcoms, romcoms, sports dramas, futuristic indie breakup stories, nailbiting war films, twisted high school horrors, westerns, space romances, space actioners and dinosaur adventures.
He has worked with directors and writers from Kathryn Bigelow and Spike Jonze to Aaron Sorkin and Diablo Cody.
Even Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which could be easily dismissed as just another superhero film, checks off several boxes — adventure, space opera, comedy and family melodrama.
While he now has to say no more than yes, he hasn’t regretted any of his choices thus far.
“I just miss fishing,” Pratt said, laughing.