Chris Pratt's Failed Audition For A Sci-Fi Classic Left The MCU Star Demoralized

The disastrous "Mercy" notwithstanding, Chris Pratt has had a pretty easy time over the last decade. The modern-day "Jurassic" movies might be rubbish, but they made a ton of money, as did "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," and that's to say nothing of his "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies. But Pratt's early career was anything but easy, and his failed audition for "Avatar" movies — which left him feeling unfit for an acting career — is just one part of the story.

To the casual fan, it may have seemed as though Pratt had a pretty straightforward ascent to stardom. He charmed viewers as the lovably oafish Andy Dwyer on "Parks and Recreation" before getting his big break with 2014's "Guardians of the Galaxy," and the rest is history. But there's a lot more to the story, with Pratt struggling to land roles in multiple high-profile projects in the years prior to becoming Star-Lord/Peter Quill.

In the 2000s and early 2010s, Pratt auditioned for two Marvel roles and a DC superhero as well as trying out for J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek" movies. As the actor told Jimmy Kimmel (via Variety), it got to the point where he began to severely doubt his abilities, with Pratt recalling thinking, "Well, I definitely don't have that it-factor they're looking for because they don't even want me to come back." Even Pratt's audition for "Guardians of the Galaxy" was only successful thanks to Dave Bautista saving the day. So no, Pratt didn't have an easy road to movie stardom, especially when you throw in the fact he also tried out for the "Avatar" films and faced a similarly negative response.

For someone who struggled to break through, Chris Pratt certainly auditioned for a lot of major projects. Sadly, the man who claims to have kicked off his career by making the "worst movie" he'd ever seen didn't exactly excel in the audition rooms.

During an appearance on the Smartless podcast, Pratt was asked about auditioning for both 2009's "Star Trek" and James Cameron's "Avatar," which debuted that same year. After confirming that he didn't even come close to being successful in either audition, Pratt went on to explain how the rejection affected him. "It was really demoralizing and made me actually truly question my potential or what I should be aiming for as an actor," he said, before recalling his experience of trying out for "Avatar:"

"I just remember reading this character description and it was like, 'He walks in and he has the 'it' factor. It is just the 'it' factor with this guy.' So I was feeling, you know, a little like, maybe overweight, I hadn't been taking great care of myself physically, I was in a relationship where we were kinda drinking a lot. I walked in and I started sweating immediately."

According to Pratt, he auditioned for two casting assistants and a camera. "[One casting assistant] just looked at me and she just looked down and she just pressed record and started doing her stuff while I was reading with the other casting assistant," he remembered. "I saw that there was literally nothing about my audition that was compelling her whatsoever."

In his Smartless interview, Chris Pratt explained how his "Star Trek" and "Avatar" auditions came prior to his casting on "Parks and Recreation," so he didn't even have that popular series to boost his confidence. What's more, he wasn't ready for his auditions. "I wasn't prepared," he told the Smartless hosts. "I hadn't done the work that I needed to do physically to be the guy who walks into the room and kind of commands attention."

Soon after, he landed the role of Andy Dwyer and started to reassess his approach to the type of roles he wanted to play. "I was like, 'Wait a minute there's something a little bit, maybe more compelling about a clown,'" he recalled, before explaining how he leaned into the slobbish slacker vibe as the seasons went on, gaining weight with each new run of episodes.

That ultimately worked against him when he came to audition for Bennett Miller's 2011 sports drama "Moneyball," with Pratt telling Movieline (via the Huffington Post) that he was deemed too overweight for the role of catcher Scott Hatteberg. Determined to claim the part in what became one of Pratt's best movies, the actor lost 30 pounds and secured the role. This started yet another shift in his approach to auditions, leading him back towards lead roles and Star-Lord/Peter Quill. Had he been more successful in his "Star Trek" and "Avatar" auditions, we might never have seen his version of Andy Dwyer and Pratt might never have established that "clown" aspect of his performance which became to essential to his performance as Quill. Now, he just has to stop making movies like "Mercy" that are bad for society and he'll be fine.