Chris Hemsworth was struggling financially before landing the most lucrative role of his career.
TheMen in Black: Internationalactor, 35, appeared on thelatest cover ofVarietywhere he opened up about the beginning of his career and how he got into acting. Hemsworth’s first role was on Australian soapHome and Away, which he booked as a high school dropout in 2004.
“A big reason I started acting was because I loved film and TV, but it was like we had no money,” Hemsworth said, adding that he was hoping to help his parent financially by getting into acting. “I wanted to pay off their house, initially. That was my sort of thing.”
“I almost put too much pressure on myself,” Hemsworth said. “If I hadn’t taken it upon myself to take care of my family, I might have been more relaxed. I remember I had an audition right before Christmas one year, where things were not going good. I’d stopped getting callbacks, and I was getting worse feedback. I thought, ‘God, why did I do this?’”
The pressure led him to miss out on roles, which he still regrets.
“I got very close toGI Joe,” Hemsworth said of the 2009 movie starring Channing Tatum.
“I got very close to Gambit in the WolverineX-Menmovies,” Hemsworth continued, though the role eventually went toFriday Night Lightsstar Taylor Kitsch. “At the time I was upset. I was running out of money. But if I played either of those characters, I wouldn’t have been able to play Thor.”