MILD SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains super light spoilers for Timur Bekmambetov’s Mercy. If you have not yet seen the film and want to go into it knowing absolutely nothing, proceed with caution!
With Timur Bekmambetov’s Mercy being a semi-screenlife film, one of the storytelling tools at its disposal is news broadcasts – and those who have been following the career of star Chris Pratt since before his Guardians of the Galaxy days will be surprised to see the clips feature a familiar face. Playing one of the anchors is none other than actor Jay Jackson, who is best known for his role as Perd Hapley on the beloved sitcom Parks And Recreation. For fans of the show, it’s a wonderful bonus in the experience of watching the new 2026 movie, and what makes it even better is knowing that the casting was Pratt’s idea.
Being one of those aforementioned fans of the show, I felt compelled to ask about Jackson’s role in Mercy when I had the chance to interview Pratt and co-star Kali Reis last week during the virtual press day for the film. The production actually sees the Marvel/Jurassic World star reunite with a few people from his past, but in the case of his “reunion” with the legendary Perd Hapley (they don’t actually share any scenes), he took credit for the awesome idea personally:
Perd Hapley, man, Jay Jackson. That's like a moment, that's an Easter egg. I was like, 'I know who we have to cast him in this if they'll do it.' And so we were grateful to do that as a little Easter egg.
For those who don’t recall (how could you forget?!), Perd Hapley is a television personality in the small town of Pawnee, Indiana on Parks and Recreation, and he is best known for… not being the brightest bulb in the chandelier. He has a tendency to take everything literally, never alters his emotional demeanor, and can be oddly blunt. He’s a side character, but he is responsible for a number of the show’s greatest moments.
Prior to being an actor, Jay Jackson was a reporter for years in Los Angeles, and he has carved out a niche for himself playing anchors and television reporters. This run began in 2007 in a Season 2 episode of Dexter, and his resume includes everything from shows like It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, The Orville, and Supergirl to movies like Fast Five and Battleship. It’s been more than a decade since the finale of Parks And Rec, but anyone who loves the show will get a kick out of Perd Hapley and Andy Dwyer being connected across the multiverse.
As noted above, however, Chris Pratt and Jay Jackson isn’t the only reunion featured in Mercy: playing a key role in the movie is Chris Sullivan, whom Marvel fans may know from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as Taserface, and the project marks the first time that the blockbuster star has worked with Timur Bekmambetov since 2008’s Wanted.
Regarding the former, Pratt delivered high praise for his co-star, noting that Sullivan probably doesn’t get the credit he deserves for his work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe because of the amount of makeup that he wore for the role. Said the actor,
Well, of course it occurred to me because I got to work closely with all of them and I'm friendly with all three of them. What's awesome is, first of all, Chris Sullivan, you know, he's amazing as Taserface. He's also unrecognizable as Taserface, so a lot of people... I mean, he's done a ton of work as an actor, so people recognize him on the street; they might not even know he was Taserface 'cause he was so different. He's so good. He's such a great actor. He's an amazing part of this movie.
As for his reunion with the director, after nearly two decades, Pratt credits the purity of a positive working relationship. A lot has obviously changed for the actor since he played a small supporting role opposite James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie in Wanted, but fond memories of collaborating with Bekmambetov helped fuel his interest in making the new film. He concluded,
Timur – it's been 17 years since we worked together. on wanted. So I think that's kind of the way it works in our business, I'm learning, is like you end up inviting people back that you really enjoyed spending time with. And if you didn't enjoy spending time with them, you don't invite them back. You know what I mean? So it's really important to the up and coming actors: be nice. Kindness. That's a big asset. There's a lot of people who can do the thing that they may ask you to do. They might invite you in if you were a pleasant person to be around.
Frankly, that’s a lesson we could all put to use in our lives.
Also starring Rebecca Ferguson, Annabelle Wallis, Kenneth Choi, and Kylie Rogers, Mercy arrives in theaters this weekend.
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