Never give up, because good things may be just around the corner. Case in point: Chris Pratt.
The star of the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy told Jimmy Kimmel on Thursday that he failed to get a Marvel role so often that he vowed never to audition again.
“I auditioned for Thor, but not even to be Thor – but to be one of the sidekick guys, and I didn’t get a callback,” Pratt said on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. “Usually they give you a little bit of feedback, and I remember the casting director goes, ‘Wow. You really made a big choice there.’ Which is code for like, ‘Hey, dial back the acting there, guy.’”
“It got to the point where I was never gonna audition for Marvel again,” he added. “I was like, ‘This is stupid, I’m never gonna be in a Marvel movie.’”
Pratt claims he auditioned for just about every Marvel film.
“I mean, all of them. Anything that came out that needed a guy that even remotely looked like me, I auditioned for in some way or another. And I would either submit a tape and they would say ‘No, we don’t need to see him,’ or I would get there and see them, they’d go, ‘No, that’s the last time we need to see you.”
While looking for the 2014 original film’s cast, director James Gunn was urged to see Pratt. The initial audition did not go well, but Gunn worked with him to smooth out the rough edges. Finally, Pratt landed the role of Star-Lord.
That has since led to starring in all three films, plus cameos in other Marvel movies.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 opens in theaters May 5.