Chris Pratt took the stage to accept one of the night’s biggest awards and immediately made it clear he wasn’t planning to limit himself to saying thank you.
In 2018, the actor received the Generation Award at the MTV Movie & TV Awards and began his speech with a warning: “I accept the responsibility as your elder, so listen up”. He then presented nine rules for life that ranged from the absurd to the deeply personal.
“Breathe. If you don’t, you’ll suffocate”, “You have a soul. Be careful with it” and “Don’t be a jerk” were some of them. In between, he joked about how to give a dog medication and how to behave in a party bathroom, while the audience laughed.
But with the sixth rule, the tone changed completely. “God is real. God loves you. God wants the best for you. Believe that. I do”, he said in front of the young people in attendance. Later, he added another piece of advice: “Learn to pray. It’s easy and it’s so good for your soul”.
Pratt ended by talking about imperfection, forgiveness, and grace, turning a speech that began with jokes into a public declaration of his faith. In the middle of an MTV ceremony, he decided to use his minutes in front of the audience to say what, to him, really mattered.