Chris Hemsworth Says He Was 'Pissed' By Reactions To His Alzheimer's Revelation

Chris Hemsworth is hoping to clarify any lingering confusion about his future in Hollywood a year and a half after he publicly disclosed some health concerns.

In a 2022 episode of the National Geographic docuseries “Limitless,” the “Thor” actor underwent testing that found he was genetically predisposed to Alzheimer’s disease, a common type of dementia that progressively affects memory, thinking and behavior.

Given that the episode came out just as Hemsworth was planning to take some time off, many outlets claimed that the test results had prompted him to step away from the spotlight.

Speaking to Vanity Fair in an interview published online Tuesday, however, he said that wasn’t the case at all.

“It really kind of pissed me off because it felt like I had been vulnerable with something personal and shared this,” he told the publication. “No matter how much I said ‘This is not a death sentence,’ the story became that I have dementia and I’m reconsidering life and retiring and so on.”

He went on to note, “I did read a really funny comment at the bottom of one article: ‘I hope Chris forgets he’s retiring and comes back.’”

Chris Hemsworth, right, and wife Elsa Pataky appear at the 2024 Academy Awards.
Chris Hemsworth, right, and wife Elsa Pataky appear at the 2024 Academy Awards. Gilbert Flores via Getty Images

Hemsworth previously touched on the misinterpretations of his “Limitless” announcement in an Entertainment Weekly interview last year. Still, he acknowledged that learning of his predisposition made him “start asking bigger questions.”

The 2022 revelation also set the stage for a memorable sequence on “Limitless” when Hemsworth’s wife, model Elsa Pataky, dressed up as an 87-year-old version of herself in a bid to assuage her husband’s health concerns.

At the time, Hemsworth was told that he’d be meeting an elderly fan ― but he seemed moved upon realizing that he’d been set up with an artificially “aged” Pataky, with whom he shares three children.

Much of Tuesday’s Vanity Fair feature was dedicated to Hemsworth’s return to the big screen next month as Warlord Dementus in “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” The prequel to 2015’s “Mad Max: Fury Road” also stars Anya Taylor-Joy.

Later in the interview, however, Hemsworth shared that his whole family underwent genetic testing as the result of his discovery. It was then that his father, Craig Hemsworth, also learned that he was predisposed to Alzheimer’s, prompting him to begin confronting early signs of the disease.

“I know my dad is going through a transition of acceptance around ‘I’m not this big, strong man with all the answers who everybody looks to for guidance now,’” the actor said. “He’s much more the observer now, rather than leading the pack. It’s a reminder to me because those are exactly the qualities I need: stillness, observation, absorption, a respect for the present moment.”

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