Fans of Chris Pratt from his Parks and Recreation days will be pleasantly surprised that he has gone from a funny member of an ensemble television show to a Marvel Action Hero leading man. That is evident when Chris Pratt enters the room for our interview during my Guardians of Galaxy Press Junket wearing a form fitting grey t-shirt that undoubtedly conceals his soon to be famous six pack abs. Yes, ladies, they do make an appearance in his latest soon to be released blockbuster Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy starring as Peter Quill, a brash galaxy adventurer plucked from Earth when he’s nine.
You’re Welcome!
I love that Pratt triumphed winning the lead role in the end since there were a slew of well known actors including Joseph Gordon-Leavitt that tested for the role of Peter Quill. I think if you are movie lover, it’s no surprise that without the right cast, the movie is just so-so, even with a great script, director and hundreds of millions to make it.
Chris talked about being at a crossroads regarding his career choices and whether he even saw himself as an action hero leading man since his weight seem to fluctuate from to role to role. Chris mentioned that after seeing himself in Zero Dark Thirty (a must see movie) in which he plays a very fit Navy Seal that, he realized, ” I can do this.”
My favorite anecdote about Chris Pratt is from Director James Gunn who was adamant about not even letting him audition, constantly referring to him as the “fat guy from Parks and Recreation.” in the end, Gunn was tricked into seeing Pratt by the casting director who kept throwing Pratt’s name in the mix. Once Gunn saw Pratt at the audition, he knew instantly Pratt was Peter Quill.
And the rest is movie history. After triumphing in getting the role, Chris remarked that the Peter Quill character appealed to him as he could infuse his own brand of comedy and personality.
Although, Chris made light of his training regimen but it was pretty intense. He spent months in pre-production to get in shape for the role. Music plays an integral part of the story line. Chris laughed that he did workout to the soundtrack for better or worse.
The one takeaway from the interview is that Pratt has to be one of those rare actors who is genuinely excited about being the face of new franchise. The told us that he didn’t feel the added pressure of being the face of the new franchise extolling that “the pressure doesn’t really fall on us, as it does on the studio.”
Not surprisingly, Pratt was a comic book fan as a kid but was more turned on by the covers more than stories and was lucky enough to win $300 in bingo to buy a slew of comic books. Funny right, what kids will spend their money on a windfall.
So how does one get into the roll of a brash, galaxy wandering adventurer, it’s all about the clothes. And as they say it’s the clothes that make the man. The first time Pratt put on Peter Quill’s long jacket, it was a momentous moment informing how he should walk, run and be Peter Quill.
Guardians of the Galaxy opens August 1 and Pratt admitted that he had been googling “surreal” trying to explain how it all feels to be the leading man of a Marvel movie. He is excitedly amazed that kids seeing this movie will help cultivate their imagination as it did for him when he was in his backyard, back in the day pretending to be Hans Solo, Luke Skywalker or Indiana Jones.
Interviewing actors like Pratt who hit the Marvel jackpot is one of my favorite types of interviews. I don’t think it dawns on them until they go on these press junkets how big Marvel is across the world. It’s nice to see the exuberance of someone who is about to hit big world wide and enjoy his success.
I interviewed Chris Pratt for his last role in Delivery Man and both times, he has been gracious and just plain funny. Stay tuned for my review of Guardians of the Galaxy (hint – it’s a must see summer movie.)
Meet the Guardians of the Galaxy Featurette: Peter Quill
Website and Mobile site: marvel.com/guardians
Like GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY on Facebook and follow GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY on Twitter.
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY opens in theaters on August 1st!
Disclosure: NYC Single Mom was provided a trip to the Los Angeles for a Disney, Marvel, DreamWorks ABC Family hosted press event. Opinions are 100% my own. #GuardiansOfTheGalaxyEvent #100FootJourneyEvent #ABCFamilyEvent
I can not wait to see this movie, I love Chris Pratt from Parks and Recreation.