An out-of-this-world friendship

From endlessly pranking each other and competing in a contest of exchanging insults to taking selfies together - if the mischiveously cropped photos can be counted as selfies - Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence enjoy a special chemistry and people cannot seem to get enough of it.

Fans will be happy to know that the bond between the Passengers co-stars is undeniable in real life.

It is so strong that Lawrence, 26, called Pratt, 37, her "best friend" at a press conference on Saturday at the Park Hyatt Beijing.

The pair finished each other's sentences, exchanged knowing glances, and did not miss out on any chance to crack jokes at the expense of the other.

The secret of their closeness?

"The humour bonds us," Lawrence told The New Paper in a separate interview.

Looking at her with his megawatt smile, Pratt agreed, saying: "She cracked me up every single day and I do not laugh easily - I am usually someone who makes people laugh.

"She made me laugh and that is always something that will draw me to someone."

The pair play fellow passengers on board the spaceship Starship Avalon, which is making a 120 year-long journey towards a distant colony planet known as Homestead II.

Pratt plays mechanical engineer Jim Preston and Lawrence is writer Aurora Lane.

In the film, which opens here tomorrow, they wake up from hibernation 90 years too early. The pair fall in love and work together to save the spaceship after discovering that it is breaking down.

Just as it is with Jim and Aurora, who spend a lot of time together, the long hours on set helped build real-life chemistry between Pratt and Lawrence, especially since they played the only main characters.

Pratt said: "When two people work these weird jobs, we get put into a situation where we spend 16, 17 hours a day with one another, for four or five months on end.

'BEAUTIFUL'

"Sometimes, you put some things together and they burn one another up. But other times, they turn into one beautiful molecule - that molecule is called Passengers."

But before rumours about them being anything more than friends start flying around, be rest assured that Pratt is an all-round family man.

He was excited to talk about taking his four-year-old son Jack fishing, and spending time with his wife, actress Anna Faris. His family remains his priority and keeps him from "giving up 100 per cent of his time" to acting.

"I'll probably do big blockbuster movies as long as they let me so that the other six months of the year, I can enjoy my life and live my life," said Pratt.

Lawrence, on the other hand, has her sight set on bigger things in Hollywood - she is hoping to move behind the camera and get into the business of not only starring in, but making movies too.

She said: "I am starting to only want to do projects where I can be a producer so I can have a little bit more control over what I am doing."

The star of the Hunger Games franchise added that she has just finished writing a script with comedienne Amy Schumer.

Dressed in matching black outfits, Pratt and Lawrence appeared comfortable with each other at the press event, which was the last leg of their global promotional efforts for Passengers.

Aside from taking questions, the pair were presented with silk robes and stuffed panda bear figures in space suits. They made the toys stage a kiss, drawing plenty of laughter.

Their promotional efforts for the movie might be over, but it is clear that their friendship has just taken off.

"I knew he was going to be funny, but he was the funniest person to ever live. It is true. We became best friends immediately," said Lawrence.

Another detail about their glowing friendship? Their love for texting each other. Pratt said he would text his co-star during lonely days on set.

One can only imagine how hilarious those conversations must have been, as Lawrence considers them to be one of her most valuable possessions.

"If I could take anything into space, it would be our text chain," she said, laughing.

harizbah@sph.com.sg

 

Read also: Lawrence, Pratt together at last, but critics pan 'Passengers'

This article was first published on Dec 21, 2016.
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