Chris Hemsworth says headlines around his Alzheimer's risk were 'overdramatized'
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Last year, Chris Hemsworth took some time off. The 39-year-old actor had just wrapped filming on the Netflix action flick Extraction 2, and he'd also completed lengthy press tours for Marvel's Thor: Love and Thunder and the National Geographic docuseries Limitless. Around the same time, Hemsworth also revealed that while filming Limitless, he learned he has a genetic predisposition for Alzheimer's disease. It's not a guaranteed diagnosis, but his genetic makeup leaves him at a much higher risk to develop the disease later in life.
At the time, headlines started swirling that Hemsworth might be taking time off because of his health — that he "doesn't plan to take many roles," a source told Page Six, and might even be retiring from acting. Speaking to EW for a new cover story, Hemsworth explains that that's definitely not the case.
"I decided to take some time off because I was exhausted, and I wanted to be home with my family," Hemsworth says. "It was interesting, because those two headlines got coupled together, that I was taking time off because of the genetic predisposition to Alzheimer's."
Nina Westervelt/Variety via Getty Images Chris Hemsworth at a red carpet event for his docuseries, 'Limitless With Chris Hemsworth' on Nov. 15, 2022
While undergoing genetic testing for Limitless, Hemsworth learned that he has two copies of the gene APOE4, which has been linked to an increased risk of Alzheimer's. (Hemsworth's grandfather has also been diagnosed with the disease, and Hemsworth estimates that his DNA makes him eight to 10 times more likely to someday develop Alzheimer's.) At the time, Hemsworth weighed whether he even wanted to publicly reveal his genetic predisposition, but he ultimately decided to share the news as a way to encourage people to be mindful of their health and how much time they have on this planet.
"That experience and that show [Limitless] made me go, 'Oh wow, none of us are invincible,'" Hemsworth explains now. "It kind of slams you into the moment. You start asking bigger questions, and you think, 'I need to slow down and just experience this moment now and not have the years race by.' It was a positive in that sense, but it got a little overdramatized, like I was potentially retiring because of this thing. Which just isn't the case."
Hemsworth has a busy plate: Up next, he'll be starring opposite Anya Taylor-Joy in George Miller's Furiosa. Still, as he gets older, he says he wants to prioritize time with his wife (actress Elsa Pataky) and kids (daughter India, 11, and twin sons Sasha and Tristan, 9). His family has also influenced what roles he wants to take in the future.
"My kids are in school, and they're of the age where it's not as easy to upheave their life and travel across the world," he adds.
For more, read EW's full cover story with Hemsworth here.
Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.
Related content:
