Chris Pratt is just so darn cool. On screen and off, he’s a great guy — the kind anyone would want to hang out with. And I am incredibly lucky that I have had the opportunity to do so — twice! I first met Chris Pratt minutes before the red carpet of Delivery Man, and then I got to catch up with him and watch him work on the set of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2.
As a huge fan of the first movie and Chris Pratt it was awesome, obviously.
Since Chris Pratt came to talk with us between takes, he even arrived in costume. Unfortunately, he left the red duster on set, but still — Star-Lord. (Look closely at the picture, you can see a dirt smudge [makeup] on his forehead from filming.)
Thanks to Disney for inviting me on this once-in-a-lifetime set visit.
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 Chris Pratt Interview
Chris Pratt had a lot to say about his role Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, and it was clear that he really enjoys what he does. Here are some of my favorite things Chris shared.
On being back on set for Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2:
It’s great. It really is. James [Gunn] is so good, he knows exactly what he wants. We all know the characters, everyone’s gotten better since the last movie. I’d say we’d really had to pick up right where we left off.
It felt like everyone’s on their A game and days are totally manageable, and the story is spread out enough to where I have days off. Which is really nice, so I’ve been able to actually get home to LA and Anna and Jack will be able to come out and visit me.
On working with Kurt Russell:
Man, it’s been awesome. Not every actor who has been around as long as he’s been around is a joy to work with. Kurt Russell is so great. I mean he’s really tough. A lot of people don’t know everything about Kurt Russell. He was a professional baseball player. He was a racecar driver as a teenager. He was a pilot for like 25 years. He has horses and breeds them. He’s such a man. He’s like so good. I was like, “I wonder…” I asked him if he would be my real dad.
No offense to my father. Rest in peace dad, but you’ve been replaced by Kurt Russell.
On the Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 script:
When I was first introduced to the story, it was with James. We were sitting and smoking a cigar in his living room, and he was like, “Okay, here’s the story.”
I didn’t read the script, he told me exactly what was going to happen. That was before the script had been written, and when he told I was captivated. I’m so moved and impressed by this story.
It’s completely different from the first movie, but similar in that it’s really going to surprise people, and I think be really good. But it’s not going to be one of these sequels that’s just a rehash of what they did in the first movie. It’s taking a big leap forward.
On the Awesome Mix Vol 2:
There is a second tape, and just like in the first movie, it absolutely belongs in the movie. You know sometimes how they put songs in movies, just because, “Hey, this would be really cool song to accompany this scene.”
That’s fine, but with James the way he’s done it, he’s always allowed the take to be a narrative tool. You know, to get you in the mood, to get you pumped up and heighten the excitement of the scene or emotion of the scene. But also, he justifies it because it’s a prop in the movie; it didn’t just come out of nowhere. It’s the same thing with volume two because Quill gets it at the end of the first movie.
On the first Awesome Mix:
In the first movie I listened to the first soundtrack every time I worked out for that movie. So by the time the movie rolled around, I hated every song.
But what’s great about this second volume is I didn’t do that because it makes sense because Peter Quill just got this take two months ago, because we’re picking up just a couple of months after the events of the first movie. So it doesn’t have to be engrained in my psyche, the way a tape would be that I’ve listened to over, and over, and over again, and have come to hate. And then again, learned to love. Which is really where I’m at now. I might not be quite to the point where I’ve learned to love them again, but I know Peter Quill would have been, it’s like the pulse of his childhood is this tape, he’s listen to it all the time.
And I don’t have to do that with the second tape, because I [Peter Quill] have only had it a couple of months. So it’s just awesome.
On training for his role:
Maybe not as much as the first one, because I didn’t have quite as far to go. I was still in, kind of kept in good shape for the last couple of movies. So this one I am just more maintenance. We already shot this sort of shirtless scene. That was pretty early on, and you really kind of like plan for that. And then after that, you know, I’m like long-sleeve shirts and leather jacket, so… I will go have a little sandwich or something.
On his son visiting the set:
It’s all about perspective, you know. He doesn’t have really a world where he’s lived in where his mom and dad weren’t on TV. That’s just a natural thing for him, to see Anna on her show or if an old movie is on or something. That’s life for him.
But the other day, and this is true, and kind of embarrassing… He was behind the monitor with a ComTech on, watching the monitor, and he just turns around and he goes, “Can I get a coconut water?”
And I was like, “Whoa, okay. Somebody needs to go sweep something up or, he’s getting a little too comfortable.” Like, to no one in particular, “Can I get a coconut water?” Like, “Who are you talking to first of all?”
On filming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2:
Yeah, it’s really fun, man. It’s really fun. It’s some work, but mostly it goes in order of quantity, it goes from waiting around and being kind of bored, to looking around and having a ton of fun and being really excited to having to do to some hard work that you want to end soon.
Mostly it’s waiting around, but there are a great amount of surreal moments, like I was spinning in circles yesterday, opposite Kurt Russell on wires, and we’re flying through the air… We’re doing these stunts, we’re just like being a superhero, which makes it super awesome. And them I’m looking at him, and he’s looking at me, and even he’s having a ball. And I was like, “This is cool.”
And so the work part is really fun, but truly the best part is just getting to know people, because that time when you’re sitting around being bored you actually just start getting to know people.
You just never know who you’re going to work with. You know, the work part will be good, and the movie hopefully will be good, but the experience, the journey, you hope that will be everything that you want it to be. On this one it really has been.
On Set With Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 blasts into theaters May 5, 2017, and it’s going to be awesome – mark my words! Don’t miss any of my posts from the set of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2:
- 7 Behind-The-Scenes Facts From Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2
- Zoe Saldana – Gamora
- Dave Bautista – Drax
- Michael Rooker – Yondu
- Karen Gillan – Nebula
- Director James Gunn
