‘The Terminal List’: Chris Pratt Got the Show Because of ‘Zero Dark Thirty’

Chris Pratt returns to television in the new Prime Video series The Terminal List.  This series goes back to Pratt’s role in the 2012 movie Zero Dark Thirty. It took 10 years to bring The Terminal List to screens, but it all began with the SEAL Team 6 film.

Pratt was a guest on the Smartless podcast on June 20. When he told hosts Sean Hayes, Will Arnett, and Jason Bateman about his new show, Pratt explained how Zero Dark Thirty connected him to the material. The Terminal List premieres July 1 on Prime Video.

Chris Pratt trained with Navy SEALs for ‘Zero Dark Thirty’

In Zero Dark Thirty, Pratt played SEAL Team 6 member Justin. Pratt met real SEALs and trained with them for that role. One, Jared Shaw, became a friend with whom he still does outdoor activities.

“In the process of doing that, I got to go down to Coronado and meet the SEALs down there and meet some guys who were training,” Pratt said on Smartless. “All the tough Navy SEAL training is done there in Coronado. So I met a guy down there who I ended up kind of shadowing for the character I was playing. He, to this day, is like my best friend. We’ve worked together. He was considering going onto Team 6 at that point but also had always had the calling to do acting and to be in Hollywood. So our paths crossed.”

‘Zero Dark Thirty’ introduced Chris Pratt to ‘The Terminal List’

The Terminal List is based on the novel by former Navy SEAL Jack Carr. Pratt’s Zero Dark Thirty friend Shaw recommended the book. 

“He knows Jack and he read this book and he goes, ‘Hey, check out this book. My friend wrote this book. You might want to make it a movie,’” Pratt said. “So I read the book, I optioned the book and at the same time the director Antoine Fuqua, I heard that Antoine was also circling this book trying to get the rights to it. I just called him on the side, I was like, ‘Dude, instead of us bidding against each other on this book, let me get the rights and I’ll just have you direct it.’ So we did that and in reading it realized it was probably better suited for a limited series.”

‘The Terminal List’ is a ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ reunion

Zero Dark Thirty was based on the true story of the hunt for Osama bin Laden. The Terminal List is fiction, but Pratt kept Shaw involved. 

“The book itself is a political thriller but we made it more of a psychological thriller with a conspiracy element,” Pratt said. “It feels at moments like Jacob’s Ladder and has this revenge conspiracy thriller, also this psychological thriller aspect to it. It’s 8 episodes on Amazon Prime. It’s totally different than anything I’ve ever done. My friend Jared who got me the book was a producer on it and plays a role in it. We hired a whole bunch of people both in front of the camera and behind the camera who are former SEALS and Spec Ops. We’re really nailing down the authenticity.”