What's Inside?
- Glen Powell says Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord changed Hollywood’s idea of leading men.
- Pratt’s buoyant style inspired Powell’s rise to stardom.
- Tom Cruise mentors Powell as he headlines 'The Running Man.'
Hollywood leading men have often been defined by intensity, brooding personas, and a certain gravitas. But according to Glen Powell, it took Chris Pratt’s breakthrough in Guardians of the Galaxy to shatter that stereotype. Pratt’s turn as Peter Quill in James Gunn’s 2014 Marvel hit redefined his own career and along with it, the move shifted what audiences and studios wanted from their male stars. Powell, now one of Hollywood’s hottest names, openly credits Pratt for paving the way for actors like him.
Glen Powell Credits Chris Pratt’s Game-Changing Hollywood Moment
When Chris Pratt first danced his way into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the quirky, irreverent Star-Lord, it marked a turning point. Until then, Hollywood largely favored actors with brooding depth like Christian Bale or Robert Pattinson. Glen Powell admitted that he struggled to break in during that era. “I remember when Chris Pratt broke out in Guardians of the Galaxy,” Powell told GQ.
“There’s no doubt it really helped — not being brooding or dark. Like, I’m not Christian Bale. Christian Bale has a gravitas and a weight, and Pattinson had his thing. And when Pratt kind of appeared on the scene where he was doing things that were a little more silly and buoyant, that’s where I feel most at home. And that’s where I feel like I had a gear that is a necessary flavor in terms of Hollywood, and not a gear that a lot of guys can play.”
Powell himself was far from Hollywood’s prototype in the late 2000s. While moody, emotionally inward stars were dominating projects like Twilight, Powell— a Texas high school football player type— was often sidelined for generic “frat guy” or “jock” roles. Pratt’s rise shifted that narrative, proving there was space for charm, humor, and buoyancy alongside action-star credibility.
The change opened the door for Powell to lean into his natural strengths, leading to breakout roles in Top Gun: Maverick, the rom-com hit Anyone but You, and this summer’s disaster thriller Twisters. Now, he’s stepping into his first solo action franchise with Edgar Wright’s The Running Man.
Glen Powell Can’t Forget Tom Cruise’s Guidance
While Pratt inspired Powell’s career trajectory, another star has directly shaped how he approaches roles. Of course, it was Tom Cruise. The two worked together on Top Gun: Maverick, and Cruise has since become a mentor. Preparing for The Running Man, Powell leaned on Cruise’s advice, which he recalls with admiration.
“I knew that based on the Stephen King book, [my character] Ben Richards was a tank. I was like, ‘Okay, I got to be a bit of a weapon.’ And so that’s why I trained the way I trained on this. I put on a lot of muscle. A lot of it was functional. A lot of it was so I could absorb hits. But a lot of it was also authentically for an audience… I went from going, ‘Oh, I’m an actor on a movie,’ to ‘I’m a high-performance athlete.’ And I’m just very lucky that I have someone like Tom who I could literally go, ‘Hey, what do I do to survive something?’”
Powell admitted Cruise once mocked his experimental mushroom-infused coffee on set, joking, “You look like you’re drinking a stool sample.”
Today, Chris Pratt stands among the highest-grossing actors in Hollywood, thanks to franchises like Guardians of the Galaxy, Jurassic World, and The Super Mario Bros. Movie. But the ripple effect of his Star-Lord debut continues. Now, both men are dominating Hollywood with their ever-growing careers.
