The People's Chris

Blockbuster movie star. Beloved coworker. Stand-up dad and all-around good hang. So why is Chris Pratt the subject of so many twitter pile-ons? He has some theories.

- By Mickey Rapkin

Chris Pratt is halfway through a set of 100 pull-ups, his hands like two giant meat puppets gripping the bar. We're doing the Murph CrossFit Hero WOD in a gym he's installed in the farmhouse he's renting outside Atlanta. He's been living here since October while filming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the final installment of the trilogy, which has earned more than R26 billion at the box office worldwide and spawned a video game, multiple action figures and a ride at an amusement park. Though the Guardians also appearedd in this winter's Thor: Love & Thunder, the end of an era is decidedly here.

"You want to be conscious and put a lot of effort into experiencing the moment," Pratt offers. "Like, This is going away. I want to take it in. You can't take it in any harder than just being present to it. So I'm being present." Still, he finds the emotional resonance bubbling up at odd times. "The other day," the 43-year-old says between sets, already laughing at himself, "Russell Wilson, the Seattle Seahawks quarterback"-that's Pratt's hometown team-"he got traded to Denver. He's been with Seattle for about ten years. Which has been about the duration of this." He gestures to his surroundings. "I was like, 'Wait, hold on, what happened?' The emotion around the last ten years sort of coming to an end... I was in the most embarrassing way, like, 'My quarterback leaves, so I'm gonna cry.' It's hitting me in moments like that."