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 Alzheimers 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 wasnt 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 Im 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 hes retiring and comes back.

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 Hemsworths wife, model Elsa Pataky, dressed up as an 87-year-old version of herself in a bid to assuage her husbands health concerns. 

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

Much of Tuesdays Vanity Fair feature was dedicated to Hemsworths return to the big screen next month as Warlord Dementus in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga . The prequel to 2015s 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 Alzheimers, prompting him to begin confronting early signs of the disease.

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