Is Chris Hemsworth the ‘sexiest man alive’? The Marvel hunk talks workouts, social media and why he chose living in Australia over Hollywood
The Australian actor, who turns 36 on August 11, talks about how he got his lucky break in Hollywood, and what he thinks about being named ‘Sexiest Man Alive’
1. He has no idea how he got famous
When I was 17, I decided one day that [being an actor] was what I wanted to do. Ever since then, it’s been a constant battle of ‘I can do it’ vs ‘No I can’t’, much like anyone else chasing down a dream. I got a job pretty quick when I got to Hollywood (2009’s Star Trek ), so I was very fortunate in that sense.
I had a huge amount of anxiety when I was auditioning and that just got worse and worse the more I heard the word ‘No’
Then I didn’t work for a while and I started to think it might not work. But Thor came up, really out of nowhere and it hasn’t stopped since then. If I could write down the formula and understand how and why it happened, I could bottle it and give it to someone if they asked. I don’t know how it worked, to be honest. A lot of it had to do with timing. I was in the right place at the right time. But you do have to have pretty thick skin and a lot of self-motivation to stick with it.
2. He came very close to quitting
[Before I landed the role of Thor], it was hard. I had a huge amount of anxiety when I was auditioning and that just got worse and worse the more I heard the word ‘No’. I did a lot of soul-searching on a number of occasions where I asked myself, ‘Why am I doing this? What’s my motivation?’
To be honest, it was to look after my family. I love acting, but I needed to make sure I was taking care of them. I kept reminding myself of that.
3. Working out helps him deal with social media madness