INTERVIEW
Thor FAT H E R HE IS ONE OF HOLLYWOOD’S HIGHEST GROSSING STARS, AND YET CHRIS HEMSWORTH IS HAPPY TO ADMIT THAT NOTHING COMPARES TO HIS BLISSED-OUT HOMELIFE IN BYRON BAY, WITH WIFE ELSA PATAKY AND THEIR THREE CHILDREN
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ver the last decade, Thor has literally hammered cinema screens across the globe. With this has come fame, glory and for the actor playing the mighty Norse God, Chris Hemsworth, a sizeable fortune. But rather than luxuriate in the inevitable prestige that comes with being a blockbuster superstar in Hollywood, the handsome 36-year-old and his Spanish wife Elsa Pataky decided to embark on a different adventure, relocating to Australia’s stunning Byron Bay in 2015. “The decision to move from Los Angeles to Australia was the best we could have made,” he says. “The film business just overwhelms you in LA. You’re living and breathing it every day and everyone’s talking about the same thing. It was starting to become oppressive.” For the Aussie native, the joy of raising his children – daughter India, seven, and twin sons Tristan and Sasha, five – on the northern New South Wales coast reaches far beyond the need to shield them from the cloistered confines of the entertainment industry, speaking instead to a more primitive desire of heritage and wild, unbridled freedom. “I wanted my kids to learn about their father’s culture and be able to grow up in a place where you’re much closer to nature and the sea. We live just around the corner from the beach and it’s a totally different kind of world,” he explains. “It’s also nice for the kids to get to know their grandparents, and I hope our children will grow up with the same kind of close spirit that my brothers and I grew up with. “For me, that’s upbringing wrapped in a feeling of love, support, and with so much attention and interest. There was security in whatever we did as brothers, and I think when you have that as a child, it gives you the incentive to take more risks when you get older… there’s nothing holding you back.” The actor’s brothers are of course fellow Hollywood heavyweights Luke and Liam Hemsworth, and while their CVs may not quite match up to that of the middle sibling, the love and solidarity between the trio is almost an Australian legend of its own, with each of them taking every opportunity to publicly praise and prop each other up. “We’re definitely
competitive in other ways, but not when it comes to work,” he assures. “I think we appreciate the instability of it all, which is why family has to come first.” Not surprisingly, great success requires great sacrifice, and the lengths Chris has gone to for his career are undeniable, particularly as bouncing between his Marvel commitments and the other more serious roles – Blackhat, In The Heart of The Sea – has required some hefty, fast, physical alterations. In particular, the strict diet and fitness regime required to transform from a hammer-wielding hulk of rippling muscle (Thor) to a 185lb racing legend (James Hunt) in just four months which would make even the toughest of tough guys baulk. Characteristically, Hemsworth takes such challenges in his stride, though he’ll admit to finding the emotional aspect of his jet-set career somewhat harder to navigate. “The tough part is leaving to do a film, and each time I have to explain to my daughter the need to go away again and she asks, ‘Can I come?’. That’s heart-breaking,” he says. “I usually just bribe her to make myself feel better saying ‘I’ll bring you a present’, and the tears are gone… that’s what’s called quality parenting!” he jokes. “But seriously, I’m all about the bribes; I don’t know how you parent without them.” Fortunately for Hemsworth, even when on the other side of the world he’s safe in Chris reprised the role of Thor the knowledge that his for the highest-grossing film of children are home with all time, Avengers: Endgame their devoted mother. After being introduced by friends in 2010 he and Elsa Pataky were married inside a year, and within a further two their daughter had arrived. For his “soul mate”, the decision to set aside her own acting career to raise their brood was vital to 42
