Chris Hemsworth: ‘Thor’ Was ‘Too Silly’ And How His Hollywood Heroes ‘Depressed’ Him

Chris Hemsworth is a god (literally) among Marvel fans for his portrayal of the Asgardian Avenger, Thor, since his introduction in 2011. While he has starred in four successful Thor movies and four more Marvel Cinematic Universe features, Hemsworth opened up to GQ about his experiences.

Apparently, his kid’s friends basically bullied him (in good fun) about Thor: Love and Thunder (2022). The eight-year-olds had serious opinions about the level of humor and the quality of the action in the fourth Thor film, directed, co-written, and starring Taika Waititi.

Hemsworth himself admits that he cringes at certain parts of the movie, stating, “I think we just had too much fun. It just became too silly. It’s always hard being in the center of it and having any real perspective… I love the process, it’s always a ride. But you just don’t know how people are going to respond.”

Thor’s personality certainly evolved since his introductory movie, starting at very serious and transforming into a goofy guy’s guy by the end. Somewhere in the middle, audiences loved the dichotomy of the no-nonsense god of thunder with a lovable goofball side, but the perfect balance didn’t stick.

Chris Hemsworth reflected on this as he considered how Marvel movies aren’t taken seriously by some of Hollywood’s iconic and prolific directors, like Martin Scorsese. In 2022 Quentin Tarantino suggested that Marvel characters are the real stars and not the actors. The Australian actor mused,

That’s super depressing when I hear that. There goes two of my heroes I won’t work with. I guess they’re not a fan of me. I’m thankful that I have been a part of something that kept people in cinemas. Now, whether or not those films were to the detriment of other films, I don’t know. 

I don’t love when we start scrutinizing each other when there’s so much fragility in the business and in this space of the arts as it is… I say that less to the directors who made those comments, who are all, by the way, still my heroes, and in a heartbeat, I would leap to work with any of them. But I say it more to the broader opinion around that topic.

Personally, I think Chris Hemsworth working with a director like Scorsese or Tarantino could help bridge the gap between a simple, fan-favorite Marvel film and a pretentious Hollywood film that may be beautiful but not accessible to everyone.