Pratt got his break in Hollywood in 2009 as lovable doofus Andy Dwyer on the NBC sitcom, “Parks and Recreation.” After playing supporting roles in films such as “Moneyball” and “Zero Dark Thirty,” Pratt had a massive year at the cineplex in 2014.
The actor starred as the voice of Emmet Brickowski in “The Lego Movie,” an animated film set in the world of Legos, which went on to make $469 million worldwide. Then Pratt took off as cocky space avenger Peter “Star-Lord” Quill in Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy.” That film went on to make $773.3 million globally and changed the trajectory of Pratt’s career.
But that role almost didn’t happen. Pratt was overweight and mainly played comedic roles, and James Gunn — the director of “Guardians” — didn’t even want to see him audition.
And that’s a good thing, since Pratt had to believably outrun dinosaurs the next year.
“Jurassic World,” which rebooted the Jurassic Park franchise with Pratt in the leading role, went on to become one of the biggest films ever. It opened to a then record $208 million before raking in $1.6 billion worldwide and is currently the seventh highest-grossing film ever.
Now, Pratt is set for what could be a huge year. After “Dominion” he returns as Star-Lord in Marvel’s next big film, July’s “Thor: Love and Thunder.”
“Dominion” is being sold with some nostalgia by bringing back the stars of the original 1993 “Jurassic Park” — Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum — and could prove to be the last in the series. That kind of buzz could lead to another blockbuster for Pratt.
— CNN’s Lisa Respers France contributed to this report.
More News
Xi Meets Blinken With Tough Issues on the Agenda
For Maxine Hong Kingston, Age Is Just Time Going By
Floating pier would move aid from ships into Gaza.