Chris Pratt finding fame seemed like a long shot especially when he dropped out of community college at a younger age. The actor was unsure when it came to his future and in fact, he wound up homeless for a brief amount of time while he was in Maui, Hawaii. By his teens, he was working as a waiter for Bubba Gump, though slowly but surely, his acting career would start to take off.
It is fair to say that the actor isn't struggling for money, nor for work these days. He has a net worth of $60 million, along with breaking records pertaining to his new salary.
It was 'Parks And Rec' that made him a known comedy in the world of TV. However, making the transition to film wasn't easy at first, and he faced his fair share of rejection.
In fact, Chris could have easily lost hope, missing out on a huge role and being told, he just didn't have that "it" factor. Thankfully, the failed audition didn't deter his hopes too badly as a couple of years later, he landed the biggest role of his career on the big screen.
Not only was it a profitable role but finally, fans saw another side of him, which was as a lead in an action type of film.
'Parks And Rec' Put Him On The Map
'Parks And Rec' became the show that changed his career. For a big chunk of time, he was known to most fans as Andy Dwyer. The show was a big success and its value only increased during the pandemic, as fans enjoyed reruns of the show.
The sitcom lasted seven seasons along with 126 episodes.
The sitcom held a special place in Pratt's heart. Even when the movie roles started to come in, he had no interest in leaving the show behind, as he explained with IGN.
"I don’t care how much money someone would offer me or what I could be offered, I wouldn’t abandon ship. There’s no f**king way. This team was awesome, and the process of making this show spoke to me and was so perfect for me like the way I like to work. Like it’s loose, and it’s fun, and you get to try something new every take, and you get to you have the opportunity of making Amy Poehler laugh or making Adam Scott laugh…”
His loyalty is certainly something else, as major roles came his way.
Getting On 'Guardians Of The Galaxy' Wasn't Easy
Perhaps his confidence was shaken up at the time, as initially, Pratt didn't even want to audition for the role believe it or not.
According to Sarah Finn, the Marvel casting director, it took Pratt some convincing to take on the role of Star-Lord. As if that wasn't challenging enough, James Gunn wasn't too thrilled about the audition either, given Pratt's past in the sitcom world.
"They're all challenging in their own ways, but I'd probably go with Guardians of the Galaxy. James Gunn has been very generous about this in saying that I, to the point of annoying him, kept insisting that Chris Pratt was the guy for the part, but Chris didn't want to play the part and refused to audition."
Ultimately, as soon as the audition got underway, Gunn knew Pratt was the perfect man for the job from his very first words. At the very least, he missed out on one career-changing role but landed under shortly after.
'Avatar' Said No
The film made billions at the box office, which must've stung Pratt that much more. He also could've got the chance to work alongside James Cameron, another opportunity he missed out on.
The film 'Avatar' closed the door on Pratt, stating that he was missing the "it" factor.
"They said they want somebody that says ‘that thing,’ that ‘It factor’… I walked into that room knowing I did not have that thing, and I walked out thinking I would never have that thing, probably."
As if that wasn't hard enough to digest, another major franchise turned Pratt down, in the form of Stark Trek.
That could've been another game-changing role but it was not meant to be.
Fans can all agree, Pratt was made for 'Guardians' and everyone is happy with the way things turned out. He could've easily have stuck to TV after the rejection, but credit to Pratt for keeping the hop alive.