Chris Hemsworth has opened up about some major life changes following the news that he is ‘taking a huge step back’ from acting after a shock diagnosis.
The thirty-nine-year-old star is known for his roles in blockbusters such as Thor: Love And Thunder, Rush and Snow White And The Huntsman. However, he has revealed that he is planning to take a step back from roles of this kind following a recent health scare.
Now, Hemsworth is one of Hollywood’s biggest heartthrobs, but as an Australian native, his road to stardom wasn’t totally straightforward.
The Ghostbusters actor actually got his first big break on the iconic Aussie show Home and Away, where he played a character called Kim Hyde. Overall, he appeared in a whopping 171 episodes of the show before he moved on from the show in 2007.
He first rocked onto the movie scene less than 2 years later in 2009 when he bagged himself a small part in J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek.
After that, the star’s rise was unstoppable, and it wasn’t long before he managed to get cast in his most iconic role as Marvel’s legendary superhero Thor. From there, Hemsworth’s career blossomed as he spread his wings and nabbed roles in everything from Blackhat to Men In Black: International.
Outside of his movie career, Hemsworth is also known for being a family man, having married model Elsa Pataky back in 2010. The pair have one daughter together, named India Rose (b. 2012), and twin sons called Sasha and Tristan (b. 2014).
In one of Hemsworth’s latest projects, a documentary series called Limitless, he revealed something tragic that has led to him making the decision to step back from his movie career and spend more time focussing on his beloved family.
The star discovered that he is high risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease after revealing that his grandfather was suffering from the degenerative condition. He has 2 copies of the APOE e4 gene.
Per Page Six, a source revealed that, as a result, the star “doesn’t plan to take on many roles.”
“Most of us, we like to avoid speaking about death,” he told Vanity Fair. “Then to all of a sudden be told some big indicators are actually pointing to this as the route which is going to happen, the reality of it sinks in. Your own mortality.”
However, he also revealed to the magazine that he is “not talking about retiring by any means.”
In his latest interview with Men’s Health, Hemsworth opened up more about the life changes he is going through after processing the news of his condition.
“You’re constantly thinking you’re going to live forever, especially as a young individual. Then to be told that this might be the thing that might take you out was like, whoa—it kinda floored me,” he said.
He added that he was “incorporating more solitude into his life” as a result.
“I’ve always been pretty consistent with my exercise commitments, but lately I’ve really felt the importance of taking time for yourself without any outside voice or stimulation and making time for stillness,” he said.
Hemsworth is also making sure he gets enough sleep, and has begun to take regular ice baths.
“My weight fluctuates a lot due to differing roles and also my own interests in regards to challenging my body in different ways,” he shared.
“I’m lifting less frequently than I was and I’m incorporating more cardio and endurance workouts which I much prefer than heavy body building style sessions.”