Is politics not a reason somebody might decide to not see a movie? If Mel Gibson produces a great new movie, then during the promotion gets drunk again and makes another racially charged rant to the police, wouldn't that dissuade people from wanting to see the movie? I know plenty of people who never forgave him for the first rant!
Why do movies use famous actors anyway? Not all movies do of course, but many do. Why? Because they're cashing in on the public liking and recognizing that person. Well what's going to happen if the public recognizes your celebrity actor, and dislikes them, for any reason? Isn't that just the other side of the same coin? It has nothing to do with the quality of the movie, but it's the nature of the industry nevertheless. Actors who are well liked for any reason are better for box office performance than actors who are disliked for any reason.
Putting Chris Pratt into your movie does not improve the artistic qualities of your movie, but it almost certainly will make the movie more successful in every measurable way.