Chris Pratt, the beloved Marvel Super Star Lord, and the Jurassic World Trilogy star, is seeking to change his public Christian image, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
In a new cover story for Men’s Health Magazine, Mr. Pratt criticized organized religion for being riddled with corruption and spawning sin. He also complained about being labeled as a religious person when he really isn't, saying:
Religion has been oppressive as f—- for a long time. I didn’t know that I would kind of become the face of religion when really I’m not a religious person. I think there’s a distinction between being religious — adhering to the customs created by man, oftentimes appropriating the awe reserved for who I believe is a very real God — and using it to control people, to take money from people, to abuse children, to steal land, to justify hatred. Whatever it is. The evil that’s in the heart of every single man has glommed onto the back of religion and come along for the ride.
This is a total reversal for Pratt. In the past, the Hollywood actor has consistently voiced his Christian values and beliefs in interviews, award shows, and on social media according to The Cut. He even took on a 21-day fast inspired by the book of Daniel, and spent one Easter Sunday erecting a giant metal cross with some friends, and putting a picture and caption on his public instagram account that said: “Like if you believe.”
“God is real, God loves you, God wants the best for you. Believe that; I do,” Pratt had said when accepting an award at the 2018 MTV Movie & TV Awards.
But in his interview with Men’s Health, Pratt flatly stated, “Maybe it was hubris for me to stand up on the stage and say the things that I said. I’m not sure I touched anybody.”
Pratt also sought to distance himself from Hillsong Church, with whom he's long been affiliated.
Related: Number of Americans Who Say They Believe in God Drops To All-Time Low
“I never went to Hillsong,” he told Men’s Health. “I’ve never actually been to Hillsong. I don’t know anyone from that church.”
This is partly true, as the actual church Pratt attends is Zoe Church in Los Angeles, which is still associated with Hillsong as a branch-off. Pratt and his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, also occasionally attend a Catholic Church she grew up going to, according to Fox News.
Pratt has received flack for his religious views before. In 2019 he made headlines when actress Ellen Page accused him of being part of a Church that hates LBGTQ people, saying on Twitter “If you are a famous actor and you belong to an organization that hates a certain group of people, don’t be surprised if someone simply wonders why it’s not addressed.”
Others began attacking him online for his religion and his allegedly conservative values.
Pratt responded to Page, saying:
It has recently been suggested that I belong to a church which ‘hates a certain group of people’ and is ‘infamously anti-LGBTQ.’ Nothing could be further from the truth. I go to a church that opens their doors to absolutely everyone.
Whether Pratt has truly lost his religious zeal or whether he’s just downplaying his faith to save his career, the political and social pressure does seem to be weighing on him. He wouldn’t want to run the risk of getting “canceled.”
Pratt will appear in the Amazon series The Terminal List on July 1, and will reprise the role of Star Lord in Marvel’s Thor: Love and Thunder, opening on July 8.