After a fairly exhaustive search that included names like Jim Sturgess, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Eddie Redmayne, James Marsden, and Joel Edgerton, Marvel has finally decided on the guy who will be the face of their quirky superhero flick, Guardians of the Galaxy. Turns out it's someone who wasn't on any of the previous shortlists, has never led his own franchise, but seems like an absolute perfect fit. Deadline reports that it will be Parks & Recreation star Chris Pratt who will be taking on the role of Peter Quill aka Star-Lord.
Even though he appears in Kathryn Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty, this is by far the biggest role of Pratt's career. He's definitely got the comedic chops and charisma for the job, and should stand up well when he's finally sharing time with Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, and more. Star-Lord is the human leader of the space-faring team of aliens who will be integral in the upcoming battle against Thanos, which makes this an important film in Marvel's second phase.
Now comes the all-important job of filling out the rest of the team. Rocket Raccoon and the tree-alien Groot will likely be computer animated, and we've heard rumors of maybe Jim Carrey or Adam Sandler voicing them. There's also been some talk of Dave Bautista(The Man with the Iron Fists) or Isaiah Mustafa possibly playing Drax the Destroyer.
Guardians of the Galaxy will be written and directed by James Gunn, hitting theaters on August 1st 2014.
