Chris Pratt has paid tribute to his Guardians of the Galaxy stunt double Tony McFarr, who died aged 47 on May 13. No cause of death has been given.
- READ MORE: ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy: Volume 3’ review: an oddly dark goodbye for Marvel’s funniest gang
McFarr passed away at his home in Orlando, Florida; according to TMZ, his mother Donna reported that toxicology reports for his death were still pending. He acted as Pratt’s stunt double for both the Guardians franchise and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.
Pratt announced the news of McFarr’s death on Instagram stories, writing on May 16: “Devastated to hear about the loss of my friend and former stunt double Tony McFarr.”
“We did several movies together,” Pratt continued. “We golfed, drank whiskey, smoked cigars, and spent endless hours on set. I’ll never forget his toughness. I remember he took a nasty shot to the head (in the title sequence of ‘Guardians 2’) and got several staples in his head came right back to work ready to go again. He was an absolute stud.”
Finally, Pratt concluded: “He was always a gentleman and professional. He’ll be missed. My prayers go out to his friends and family, especially his daughter.”
Alongside being Pratt’s stunt double, McFarr worked in films such as Rock of Ages, Banshee, Homeland, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and The Hunger Games.
Last year, Chris Pratt said he was open to playing the Star-Lord again following James Gunn’s departure from MCU.
Though co-stars Zoe Saldana and Dave Bautista confirmed that they would not return for future Marvel projects, Pratt said that he will continue to play Star-Lord as long as Marvel honour what Gunn started.
“It would be strange to continue [Star-Lord’s] story without James,” Pratt told Total Film. “He’s done such a masterful job in the first three films. We really found the voice of Peter Quill together and without him, obviously, I would never have had this opportunity.
“He writes it, he directs it, he dreams up the music, it’s his imagination on screen. So, to continue to tell the story, it would really be important to honour what he’s done in the first three films and to honour what the fans have grown to love about the character and not simply do it because people might show up to pay for it, you know?”
In a three-star review of Vol. 3, NME wrote of the film: “The third – and apparently final – outing is an odd duck. It’s sometimes funny and emotionally effective when it counts, but also very, very dark, with some of the grimmest scenes of any Marvel movie.”