It’s certainly not uncommon for certain actors to become a hot property and to seemingly be cast in everything for a periods of time. When it becomes clear that audiences love, or at least seem to like certain actors, they can find themselves in incredibly high demand. Right now, Chris Pratt is that sort of star, as he’s the lead in multiple blockbuster franchises. He’s even been cast in roles that, at least on paper, don’t seem right for him. This is probably why a sizable portion of social media took the bait when a fake casting announcement claimed Pratt was the new voice of The Grinch.
To be clear, in case you saw the image going around which looked like a THR article claiming that Chris Pratt would voice the Grinch in a new TV special, such a thing is not actually happening. Although, people would be forgiven for believing it. With the news that Pratt will voice Mario in the upcoming animated Super Mario Bros. movie, and the news that Pratt will voice comic strip cat Garfield, in an upcoming animated film, the idea that Pratt could get cast as the Grinch isn’t as crazy as the casting that has already happened.
But whether fans believed the news or not when they first saw it, they’ve been having some fun since poking fun at Chris Pratt and his seeming stranglehold on the theatrical animation voice over business. After roles in The LEGO Movie and Pixar’s Onward, Pratt is just adding more voice roles one after another.
BREAKING: Chris Pratt adds the Grinch to his infinity gauntlet of animated characters. In a statement to press, Chris pratt proclaimed; “I’m coming for Charlie Brown next!” pic.twitter.com/h04eL8DNfZDecember 4, 2021
And there’s an added layer of anger with some fans because on top of the “Why is Chris Pratt being cast to voice literally every character?” frustration, there’s the “Why do they keep remaking the Grinch?” anger, as a lot of people believe the animated TV special from 1957 is still the best adaptation ever, and every attempt since, and there have been several, is lacking.
Why does the Grinch look like he hired Chris Pratt to piss people off pic.twitter.com/YPd5dvnv6WDecember 4, 2021
To be fair, we haven’t heard Chris Pratt voice Mario or Garfield yet, so there’s every possibility that it will actually work, but there is certainly a feeling from fans of these characters about how they should sound, and Chris Pratt is…not that. There’s a sense that Pratt gets these roles because he’s a star that can potentially draw box office, and not necessarily because he’s the right guy for the job.
Chris Pratt auditioning for The Grinch pic.twitter.com/yNMJnToJRnDecember 5, 2021
Chris Pratt has a Marvel franchise, he’s the star of the Jurassic World and he’s been rumored to take on all sorts of other live-action roles as well. It only makes sense he would take over animation. Perhaps, in the end, everybody will be voiced by Chris Pratt. It’s just the world we live in now, we should not fight it, we should just accept it. I mean, it’s not the worst possible voice, right?
your sweet child opens their mouth to say their first words and chris pratt’s voice comes out. he is voicing your baby. youve been pratted.December 5, 2021
So Chris Pratt is not the next Grinch, at least not yet. That’s not to say Pratt won’t still end up voicing your favorite animated character at some point, or that there won’t be somebody new won’t be voicing the Grinch before too long, but at the moment, we’re in the clear.