Chris Pratt

Person          Quote “I think that’s why they wanted me to voice the character of Mario. You can take the kid out of Lake Stevens, but you can’t take Lake Stevens out of the kid. That sensibility has really helped me when I’ve been playing these blue-collar heroes.” — Chris Pratt     A Chris Pratt   [Edit]   [Talk]

Christopher Michael Pratt, commonly known as Chris Pratt, (born June 21, 1979) is an American actor prominently starring in both television and Hollywood films. His most well-known roles include Peter Quill/Star-Lord in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Emmet Brickowski in The Lego Movie (worked with Charlie Day in the sequel), Andy Dwyer in Parks and Recreation, Owen Grady in Jurassic World, Barley Lightfoot in Onward, and Garfield in The Garfield Movie. Pratt voiced the Nintendo mascot Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Movie based on the video game series of the same name.

Biography[]

Early life, early work and breakthrough[]

At age of seven, Pratt and his family relocated to Lake Stevens, Washington. During his high school days, Pratt excelled in wrestling and as a shot put for a track team. He graduated high school in 1997. After dropping out of community college, Pratt worked as a door-to-door ticket salesman and a daytime stripper. He ended up homeless in Maui, Hawaii. At age 19, Pratt worked as a waiter for a Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. At the time of his last odd job at Bubba Gump, Pratt was approached by Rae Dawn Chong, who offered Pratt a spot for her film Cursed Part 3. In 2011, Pratt portrayed Scott Hatteberg in Moneyball.

Franchise work and worldwide recognition[]

While Pratt had been known to this point for playing supporting characters and he was best known for his portly character on Parks and Recreation, 2014 marked a turning point in his career when he headlined two major studio films: Emmet Brickowski in The Lego Movie, which grossed $469.1 million; and Peter Quill / Star-Lord in Marvel Studios' Guardians of the Galaxy, which grossed $773.3 million.^[1] In 2015, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world.^[2]

Mario[]

In a Nintendo Direct presentation broadcasted on September 23, 2021, Pratt was revealed as the voice actor of Mario in Illumination's The Super Mario Bros. Movie released on April 5, 2023, with Mario's longtime voice actor Charles Martinet appearing as Mario and Luigi's father and Giuseppe.^[3] Pratt states that voicing Mario had been his childhood wish; in an Instagram video, he relates that he once stole a quarter from a wishing well in order to play a Mario arcade game at a nearby coin-operated laundromat, which he believes had an influence on his wish coming true.^[4]

During a phone interview, Pratt mentions his childhood upbringing, as well as his time as a family man, that brought him to the role of Mario, and noticing the similarities between him and the character with the "blue-collar American experience".^[5] Early in development, Pratt's Sopranos-esque voice was praised as a "New York, Italian guy" voice by Penguin King voice actor, Khary Payton,^[6] however the New York accent was axed by directors as they felt it sounded too much like the character Tony Soprano.^[7]

Pratt's voice as Mario was initially criticized online following the trailers,^[8] and criticized by film critics upon release.^{[9][10][11][12]}

In June 2023, Pratt stated that while news on the sequel will come "soon", development on the project has been put on hold due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike, saying that it will only resume once "the writers feel comfortable moving forward".

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

• Pratt has said on his Instagram that he played the original Super Mario Bros. game at the arcade. It is unknown whether he's referring to the VS. version or Mario Bros..

References[]

See also[]

• List of actors/voice actors in the Mario series

External links[]

• Chris Pratt at the Internet Movie Database
• Chris Pratt at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
• Chris Pratt at MarioWiki, the Fandom wiki on Mario.
• Chris Pratt at Super Mario Wiki, the Super Mario wiki.
• Chris Pratt at The Disney Wiki, the Fandom wiki on Disney.