2000–2013: Early roles and breakthrough At nineteen years old, while working as a waiter at the
Bubba Gump Shrimp Company in Maui, Pratt was discovered by actress and director
Rae Dawn Chong. Impressed by his charisma, she cast him in her directorial debut—a short horror film titled
Cursed Part 3 (2000), in which he played Devon. According to Chong, Pratt arrived on set "early and completely prepared", and his performance "blew everyone away". Pratt credits
Cursed Part 3 with teaching him the fundamentals of acting, stating that he has "no regrets about getting [his] start" in the film. Pratt's first regular television role was as Harold Brighton "Bright" Abbott in the series
Everwood (2002–2006). In the
fourth season of the teen drama television series
The O.C. (2006–2007), Pratt portrayed the activist Winchester "Ché" Cook. Pratt then portrayed Barry—Wesley's (
James McAvoy) co-worker and unfaithful best friend—in the action thriller film
Wanted (2008) and played Bobby in the comedy
Wieners (2008). He played the
fiancé of Emma (
Anne Hathaway) in the romantic comedy
Bride Wars (2009), the officer Roman Duda in the horror-comedy ''
Jennifer's Body (2009), and the leading man role of Lester Watts in the romantic comedy Deep in the Valley (2009). The latter marked his first leading role in a comedy film. In 2009, Pratt began portraying Andy Dwyer on the NBC comedy series Parks and Recreation'', a role he played until 2015. The role was initially intended as temporary, but Pratt's performance impressed the producers so much that they made him a series regular. The role ultimately became his
breakthrough. Initially, he was told he was too overweight for the role, which he credited to the cooking of his then-girlfriend, actress
Anna Faris. Determined to land the part, Pratt committed to a strict workout routine while keeping tabs on the casting process, eventually shedding within three months. Once he felt physically ready, he sent a photo to the casting director and secured the role. He regained the weight he had previously lost for his role in the
high school reunion comedy
10 Years (2011), then shed it once more to portray a
Navy SEAL in
Zero Dark Thirty (2012). The film received mixed reviews; critic
David Edelstein from
Vulture stated that he had enough "sweetness to compensate for his character's adolescent japes". He later played the minor roles of Brett and Paul in the 2013 films
Delivery Man and
Her, respectively.
2014–2018: Worldwide recognition and blockbuster films After previously being known primarily for supporting roles, in 2014, Pratt took on leading roles in two major studio films. The film was both a critical and commercial success, receiving predominantly positive reviews on
Rotten Tomatoes and earning $470.7 million at the global box office. His other major role in 2014 was portraying
Peter Quill—also known as Star-Lord, a spacefaring
mercenary who was abducted from Earth as a child and raised by a group of alien thieves and smugglers called the
Ravagers—in
Marvel Studios'
Guardians of the Galaxy. However, casting director
Sarah Finn recommended him to director
James Gunn, who had been struggling to cast the part and initially dismissed the idea. Finn arranged a meeting between the two, during which Gunn became convinced that Pratt was the ideal choice for the role.
Guardians of the Galaxy ranked as the
third-highest-grossing film of 2014, with a total revenue of $773.3 million. The role was included in a multi-film contract that Pratt signed with Marvel Studios. Bruce Diones of
The New Yorker liked his charisma and his "love for
seventies music [which] is so full of good will that he buoys the film". In November 2013, Pratt—an enthusiastic fan of
Jurassic Park (1993), which he has described as "my
Star Wars"—was cast as
Owen Grady in the science fiction film
Jurassic World (2015), the fourth installment of the
Jurassic Park film franchise. In preparation for the role, Pratt engaged in various workouts—
P90X, running, swimming, boxing, and kickboxing—and increased his caloric intake to 4,000 calories daily.
Jurassic World was a commercial success, grossing $1.67 billion worldwide, making it the
third-highest-grossing film of all time upon release and the
second-highest-grossing film of 2015. Alongside
Denzel Washington, Pratt starred as Josh Faraday, a gambler and cowboy, in the action film
The Magnificent Seven (2016), a remake of the
1960 Western of the same name. He later appeared in
Passengers (2016), a science fiction film released in December, co-starring
Jennifer Lawrence. He portrayed Jim Preston, a mechanic seeking to leave a world that no longer appears to value traditional, hands-on labor.
Passengers was a commercial success, grossing $304 million worldwide. Pratt reprised his role as Star-Lord in
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017). It became the
eighth-highest-grossing film of 2017, having grossed $869 million on a $200 million budget. He reprised his role again as Star-Lord as part of the
ensemble cast in the
Russo brothers'
Avengers: Infinity War (2018). Pratt described his role in the film as a "guest star" appearance and said "you get to be a little more vibrant; a little more irreverent; a little bit more colorful if you want it to be". Several social media users referred to Star-Lord as the character responsible for sabotaging events in
Infinity War. Pratt himself acknowledged the criticism, admitting as much in response to the widespread sentiment. It grossed $2.052 billion, making it the
highest-grossing film of 2018 and the
fifth-highest-grossing film of all time from release until it was surpassed in January 2023 by
Avatar: The Way of Water (2022). He then reprised his role as Owen Grady in
J. A. Bayona's
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018). One of the most
expensive films ever made, it became the third-highest-grossing film of 2018, grossing $1.31billion on a budget of $432 million, but received generally negative reception.
2019–present: Mixed success and production company Pratt reprised his role as Emmet Brickowski in
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (2019)—the sequel to
The Lego Movie (2014). The film received generally positive reviews from critics, although the Rotten Tomatoes consensus noted that it "isn't quite as much fun as its predecessor". Despite the somewhat favorable critical reception, it
underperformed at the box office. In the Western
The Kid (2019), Pratt plays Grant Cutler, the villainous uncle of protagonist Rio Cutler. Pratt subsequently reprised his role as Star-Lord in
Avengers: Endgame (2019), although he was not featured as part of the main ensemble cast.
Endgame was the highest-grossing film of all time until it was surpassed by
Avatar (2009) due to its 2021 re-release in China. In February 2020, Pratt established his own production company, Indivisible Productions. Its first project,
The Terminal List—which stars Pratt and lists him as an executive producer—premiered on
Amazon Prime Video in July 2022. In March 2020, Pratt voiced one of the lead characters in the
Disney and
Pixar animated film
Onward, alongside his
Avengers co-star
Tom Holland. Pratt and
Parks and Recreation announced the upcoming release of a new album based on Pratt's character Andy Dwyer in May 2021. In June that same year, they officially released a pair of singles, "The Pit" and "Two Birds Holding Hands", before releasing the album
Mouse Rat: The Awesome Album in August. In
The Tomorrow War (2021), Pratt played the lead role of Dan Forester, a science teacher who travels into the future to help humanity fight against an alien invasion. The film received generally mixed reviews from critics, as did Pratt's performance in the film. He reprised his role as Owen Grady in
Jurassic World Dominion (2022), which became the
third-highest-grossing film of the year, making just over $1billion. That same year, Pratt played Star-Lord in
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) in a non-starring role. Pratt voiced the main character
Mario in
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023). Having grossed over $1.36billion, it became the
highest-grossing film based on a video game of all time and the
second-highest-grossing film of 2023. He reprised the lead role of Star-Lord in
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023), which grossed $845.6 million worldwide, becoming the
fourth-highest-grossing film of 2023. Pratt voiced
the titular cat in the animated comedy film
The Garfield Movie (2024)—his only role of the year. Despite unfavorable critical response, the film performed well at the box office. In 2025, he starred in
The Electric State alongside
Millie Bobby Brown. Made on a budget of $320million, it is one of the most expensive films ever produced and Netflix's most expensive film of all time. However, it was panned by critics; some thought that the budget was wasted, while others were disappointed by the performances of the actors and direction of the
Russo brothers. In 2026, Pratt starred as a detective in the
science fiction thriller film Mercy, which was a critical and commercial failure. He reprised the voice of Mario in
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. ==Acting style and public image==