GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY's STAR-LORD, Chris Pratt, Shares Embarrassing Story of His G.I. JOE Audition
Actor Chris Pratt is the hottest trending actor in Hollywood for 2014 after voicing Emmet in The LEGO Movie earlier this year and as Peter Quill / Star-Lord in Marvel Studios' Guardians of the Galaxy. Pratt also landed a leading role in next summer's Jurassic World, which just wrapped filming a few days ago.
To finish out this year, Pratt will conclude his role as Andy Dwyer in the final season of the television series Parks and Rec but everything wasn't always as awesome as they are right now. Pratt was candid in a new interview with Esquire (via The Hollywood Reporter) and said, a few years back, he auditioned for a role for one of the G.I. Joe movies and was really embarrassed during his audition.
"When Guardians of the Galaxy was pitched to me, I said, 'I don't think so.' I just didn't picture myself getting the role," Pratt said and due to the fact he was not in shape for his Guardians audition. "I didn't want to go and embarrass myself like I did when I auditioned for G.I. Joe a couple of years previously. I went in there, and halfway through I saw the director's eyes just glaze over. It made sense — I was a little heavy and out of shape. I was not gonna play someone from G.I. Joe. I did not look like a G.I. Joe action figure come to life."
Guardians of the Galaxy writer/director James Gunn saw through Pratt's larger size during his audition for Star-Lord and gave him the part. Pratt then got ripped and he was one of the reasons an anti-hero hero movie with a cast of Marvel characters few in the mainstream even knew of brought in over $160 million in its worldwide opening weekend.
Whoever Pratt was auditioning in front of for G.I. Joe is now the one who is embarrassed.