Guardians of the Galaxy - Chris Pratt interview

CHRIS Pratt talks about getting the role of Peter Quill in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and perfecting the look of the character. He also talks about some of his ideas for future episodes in the franchise, including killing Iron Man, and why he also came up with his own dance moves for the film and what inspired them. He was speaking at a UK press conference.

Q. What appealed to you about Guardians of the Galaxy and when did you know you’d got the part? Was it after your screen test?
Chris Pratt: I figured that if I could just get them to believe in me physically as the character then it would be mine. I really felt like James [Gunn, director] and I gelled in a really nice way and we seemed to have… almost immediately I felt like my spirit was right for this character and the way I sounded was the way he sounded. It was just the look. I just wasn’t walking around in the right physical state yet. So, if I could convince them to take a chance on me I’d be able to make the changes and look like the character. And I also had an inside man. My friend, Ben, was essentially reading the role of Drax for all the other screen tests, and he is one of my very best friends [as well as one of James Gunn’s best friends], and he was like: “Dude, you can’t tell anyone but it’s totally yours! No one has come in and done what you just did.”

Q. Who do you think stole the show the most in the movie?
Chris Pratt: I think, for me, when the movie really takes off is when we zoom in on Rocket and Groot together and you see Groot drinking out of the fountain and Rocket looking through his big screen for potential bounties. That’s the moment where this synergy kind of happens. You take all the parts – you’ve met Peter Quill, you’ve met Gamora, I don’t think you’ve quite met Drax yet – but you see somehow the sum is greater than the whole. And it’s when Rocket is talking and he sees the kid and says: “Who’s this little guy? It’s not cool to need help [walking].” It’s then that it becomes really fun and you see that this journey is going to be really good. So, I’d say Rocket. In that moment, he steals the show for me.

Q. What songs do you want on the Awesome Mix Tape Vol 2?
Chris Pratt: I wouldn’t mind seeing Peter Quill try and seduce somebody to Lionel Ritchie. So, like[sings]: “Hello, is it me you’re looking for?” And that would be how he gets all of those women, with this one Lionel Ritchie song. And there would be a scene where this girl is crying because it’s so beautiful.

Q. If the Guardians were to one day meet The Avengers, who would you like to work with or perhaps collide with?
James Gunn: I would like to see them kill Thor [laughs]. Chris [Hemsworth] and I were driving the other day and we were having one our ridiculous conversations, talking about all the different things that could happen to the Guardians in this universe, as we do endlessly. If you think we’re sick of hearing about the Guardians, no we talk about it constantly! And I said: “Seriously, we really, really think that Starlord [Peter Quill] should kill Iron Man.” The audience would think it was so awesome if he came down and shot Tony Stark in the face. People would be so surprised.

Chris Pratt: Yeah they would! Or maybe Rocket. Without giving away anything… well, none of my ideas are ever going to be realised so I may as well tell you all of them! But in the comic, Gamora and Iron Man have a thing… they hook up. But what if Quill says he doesn’t like it and maybe Rocket hears it and shoots Tony Stark – just blows a hole in his face [laughs]! It would be amazing! It would be super-bad.

James Gunn: Robert [Downey Jr] makes $100 million a movie, so we can’t afford to have that anymore [laughs].1

Q. And what song would be playing when you kill Iron Man?
Chris Pratt: [Sings] “Hello, is it me you’re looking for?” [Then mimics shooting action] And credit roll… seven minutes into the movie! People would be going: “Is it over? Totally worth it!”

James Gunn: And the rest of the movie is like a Weekend at Bernie’s style thing [laughs].

Q. Did you come up with your dance moves all by yourself?
Chris Pratt: Yes, yes I did. It was kind of a throwback. Everything about Peter Quill had to be 1988 or earlier, so I thought: “Well, let’s have some Michael Jackson, a few moves from the disco era, some early hip-hop and stuff like that.” I remember that around that time in my life my brother and I would have dance-offs in our basement, so there was sort of that spirit in it too. So, yes, those are my moves, although I’ve never been paid as a choreographer… yet.