On the 30th, Robert Downey Jr., who plays “Iron Man”, expressed his admiration for Chris Hemsworth’s performance as “Thor” in the Avengers franchise, calling his portrayal the most complex. However, Chris himself has not been able to forgive his own performance in “Thor: Love and Thunder”.
In an interview with “Vanity Fair” on Tuesday, Robert Downey Jr. praised Chris’ performances in “Thor: Ragnarok”, “Avengers: Infinity War”, and “Avengers: Endgame”, describing them as “awe-inspiring sleight of hand” and applauding Chris for bringing such complexity to the role. Robert mentioned, “Playing Thor is not easy because there are many inherent limitations, but he and Kenneth Branagh (the director) found a way to overcome these difficulties, making him relatable to some extent and god-like at the same time. In my opinion, Chris Hemsworth is the most complicated character among all of us Avengers. He is witty and dignified, yet also possesses a calm, passionate, and gentle side.”
However, Chris revealed to “Vanity Fair” that he still cannot forgive himself for his foolish performance in “Thor: Love and Thunder”, feeling like he owes fans another Thor movie. He expressed, “I got caught up in the improvisation and humor, and I became a parody of myself. My performance didn’t meet the level of appreciation from the audience.”
The “Thor” film series has earned box office revenues of $449 million, $664 million, $855 million, and $761 million worldwide for the first to the fourth installment respectively. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the films received critic scores of 77%, 67%, 93%, and 63%, and audience scores of 76%, 75%, 87%, and 76%, with the fourth installment failing to surpass the standards set by the third. Viewers have noted that “Thor: Love and Thunder” continuously showcases foolish performances, making it difficult to engage with the serious aspects of the story.
Last year, Chris expressed regret over his performance in “Thor: Love and Thunder”. Chris told “GQ” what embarrassed him the most about the movie, stating, “The film was very humorous, with many cool actions, but the visual effects (VFX) were not great.” He added, “I think we had too much fun while shooting, to the point of making it look too silly.”
For those familiar with the “Thor” movies, it’s known that Chris is a muscular action star. Surprisingly, many may not know his initial reaction when offered the role of “Thor”. In 2011, Chris told the “Los Angeles Times” that upon receiving the role, he began reading comics and discovered that Thor weighed approximately 500 pounds and resembled Arnold Schwarzenegger, prompting him to work on his physique to match Arnold’s bulk.
Chris recalled, “The producers kept saying, ‘Yeah, you keep as big as you can.’ Then I came back before Christmas, right at the end of the year, just before we started filming, I did a final camera test; but, I put on the costume, and within a few minutes, my hands started going numb.” He continued, “Everyone was like, ‘Yeah, this is not good.’ I started feeling this prickling pain, and if you touched your skin, the blood wouldn’t come back quickly. I thought, ‘Well, this is not going to work.’ It was determined he needed a new tailored suit for the role.
Recently, Chris has a movie titled “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” set to be released. There are reports that he will make a cameo in “Deadpool & Wolverine”. A nine-minute short film of “Deadpool & Wolverine” shown at the International CinemaCon last month featured a scene of “Thor” crying on “Deadpool’s” body.