Chris Pratt is quite the name in Hollywood these days, and he’s got 40 million Instagram followers to prove it. The American actor had a busy 2022, with appearances in Jurassic World: Dominion, Thor: Love and Thunder and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special — which featured some cool new animation, by the way. And don’t forget his Prime Video series The Terminal List.
But the fun doesn’t stop there, as it seems 2023 is going to be as busy, if not busier, for the Parks and Recreation alum. Pratt will once again reprise his role as Peter “Star-Lord” Quill in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3, which just dropped a new image featuring Will Poulter’s Adam Warlock. That highly anticipated threequel comes out a couple of months after Universal’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie is released.
As we await these bigger-name releases, let’s take a look back at some of Pratt’s earlier films. You may have forgotten he co-starred in an Oscar-winning drama, for example. See our list below.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
7 Wanted (2008)
Relativity Media
Wanted was a showcase of Angelina Jolie (remember her?) and James McAvoy kicking butt and slinging weapons like none other. But remember Wesley’s (McAvoy) lovingly disloyal co-worker in the film, who gets whacked in the face with a computer keyboard? That’s Pratt, if you might recall. But the storyline mainly follows Wesley as he finds out his long-lost father is an assassin. And when his dad is murdered, Wesley is recruited into the organization to follow in his dad’s footsteps. Wanted is an action-packed classic, to say the least.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
6 Bride Wars (2009)
Fox 2000 Pictures
In Bride Wars, lawyer Liv (Kate Hudson) and school teacher Emma (Anne Hathaway) have been best friends since their childhood. They’re both proposed to by their boyfriends (one of whom is played by a scene-stealing Pratt) on the same day, and they plan their wedding parties in Plaza Hotel, using the services of the famous Marion St. Claire. However, due to Marion’s secretary’s mistake, their weddings are scheduled for the same day. From there, it’s chaos as Liv and Emma both try to sabotage each other’s wedding party. Despite its overall silliness, Bride Wars is often still enjoyed via repeat viewings today, especially for those who can relate to wedding-prep drama that’s arguably inevitable.
5 Jennifer’s Body (2009)
Fox Atomic
Pratt played Officer Roman Duda in Jennifer’s Body, if you might remember. The slasher film follows bookworm Needy (Amanda Seyfried) and cheerleader Jennifer (Megan Fox), who are best friends — though they share little in common. They share even less in common when Jennifer mysteriously gains an appetite for human blood after a disastrous fire at a local bar. As Needy’s male classmates are steadily killed in gruesome attacks, she must uncover the truth behind her friend’s transformation and find a way to stop the rampage before it’s too late. Jennifer’s Body was surely a crowd-pleaser attempt and benefits from viewings in group settings.
4 Moneyball (2011)
Columbia Pictures
Aaron Sorkin co-wrote the screenplay for Moneyball, which is based on the acclaimed book by The Big Short author Michael Lewis. The 2011 film adaptation follows Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), who is handicapped with the lowest salary constraint in Major League Baseball. If he ever wants to win the World Series, Billy must find a competitive advantage. Enlisting the help of Yale graduate Peter Brand (Oscar-nominee Jonah Hill), Billy uses statistical data to analyze and place value on the players he picks for the team. Moneyball was rightfully nominated for six Oscars. Pratt plays one of the A’s players and has some terrific scenes sprinkled throughout the film.
3 10 Years (2011)
Temple Hill Entertainment
Pratt was a supporting player in yet another comedy that moviegoers will surely relate to. 10 Years centers on former high-school friends (Channing Tatum, Rosario Dawson, Justin Long) who meet again after a decade and discover that the passage of time has changed some things, but not others. We follow along with Jake (Tatum), who loves girlfriend Jess (Tatum’s now-ex-wife, Jenna Dewan) but can’t decide when to pop the question. Bringing Jess along to his ten-year reunion, he’s flustered to see high school sweetheart Mary (Rosario Dawson) and her now-husband (Ron Livingston) he didn’t know about. Other memorable co-stars include Anthony Mackie and even Oscar Isaac.
2 Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Before her Oscar-winning portrayal of Tammy Faye, Jessica Chastain as a CIA intelligence analyst in Zero Dark Thirty was arguably her most important role to date. The film was rightfully nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, but it probably came closest to winning Best Actress. Playing a strong-willed and utterly committed FBI agent, Chastain is a vital ingredient of this film about the pursuit of Osama bin Laden after 9/11. Pratt plays a U.S. soldier involved in bin Laden’s seizure. His scene-stealing performance might re-spark your interest in throwing horseshoes as a hobby — if you ever had such an interest.
1 Her (2013)
Annapurna Pictures
Spike Jonze took home multiple trophies for his acclaimed Her script. In a tear-jerking performance, Joaquin Phoenix plays Theodore, a lonely man in the final stages of his divorce. When he’s not working as a love-letter writer, his downtime is spent playing video games and occasionally hanging out with friends, including co-worker Pratt (who’s dynamite here, by the way). As we might recall from this unusual premise, Theodore decides to purchase the new OS1, which is advertised as the world’s first artificially intelligent operating system — “It’s not just an operating system, it’s a consciousness,” the ad states. Theodore quickly finds himself drawn in with Samantha, the voice behind his OS1, played by a terrific Scarlett Johansson.
