Chris Hemsworth Just Had the Ultimate Last Laugh With a 'Thor' Throwback Photo

After a decade of Marvel hits—more than twenty to date and a dozen more still on the way—it may seem impossible to remember a time when Chris Hemsworth wasn’t an A-list action hero most famous for playing the God of Thunder.

On Instagram yesterday, the actor celebrated 10 years since the premiere of Thor, his first major leading role, with a cheeky reminder that he was hardly a household name circa-2011. In the post, a far less swole and more baby-faced Hemsworth is shown sitting next to his co-star Tom Hiddleston, both staring into the camera intently, Thor scripts unfurled on the table in front of them, oblivious to the rocket-like trajectory their careers were about to take.

“This year marks the 10th anniversary of THOR when two unknown lads were given the keys to the kingdom. It’s been a hell of a ride and we clearly haven’t aged a day,” Hemsworth joked in the post’s caption. As a kicker to the post, Hemsworth included a screen grab of a now-infamous headline from the entertainment site Vulture, which reads, “Marvel Rolls Dice, Casts No-Names for Thor.”

The Vulture story added that the studio was rumored to have auditioned more well-known actors at the time such as Shaia LaBeouf and Josh Hartnett in the Kenneth Branagh-directed blockbuster. “Let’s hope they follow the J.J. Abrams route and put the money they saved in casting straight to special effects,” the post snarkily concluded.

It may be the understatement of the decade to say that Hemsworth, Hiddleston, and Marvel all had the last laugh. Thor went on to become one of the biggest hits of the year, grossing nearly $450 million, with each of the franchise's sequels outperforming the last in the years since. Hemsworth and Hiddleston, of course, went on to become two of Hollywood’s most bankable stars.

We’ll have the chance to see if those scrappy unknowns can continue their winning streak when Thor 4 hits theaters in May 2022.

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