Chris Hemsworth's Thor Audition Sucked, And Liam Hemsworth Almost Got The Job Instead
It's very hard to imagine anyone but Chris Hemsworth playing Thor, the God of Thunder in the MCU — even if that person not only looked like Chris Hemsworth, but is related to him. But we could have seen a certain brother of Chris in the role. Liam Hemsworth, he of the "Hunger Games" movies, almost got the role instead of his big brother.
With the premiere of "Thor: Love and Thunder" coming up, Chris Hemsworth has been making the press rounds, talking about his role and how the whole thing started. Thor is the first MCU character to get a fourth solo film, and as someone who was on the set of the very first one, no one had any idea that this would be the character people responded to. Of course, in hindsight, we were all very silly, not realizing that Thor would grab people. He's a delight! The story of how it all came about, and how Liam almost got cast instead of Chris is pretty great.
Screwing up the first audition
In a Wired autocomplete interview, Chris Hemsworth said that he auditioned for the role of Thor long before his brother Liam did. He said he didn't get a callback because, "I think my audition sucked. I think that was the response I got." He said Liam got very close — in the final five actor group — but he didn't make it. Chris said:
"And they were like, look, he's great, but he's a bit young. My manager then said, well, he does have an older brother which was me. I came back in, re-auditioned a few times and just had a different attitude. Maybe I had a little more, sort of motivation, that my little brother got a look in and I hadn't. I also had done a couple of films in-between those two auditions, so I had a bit more experience and confidence in what I was going to do."
He said he was excited but hesitant because this was a six-picture deal. That sounds almost quaint now, doesn't it? He didn't want to be typecast, though I would submit being typecast as a super hot god of thunder who wields a giant hammer isn't such a bad thing.
Hemsworth expanded on why he was acceptable for the role in the second audition in an interview with Vanity Fair. Director of the first "Thor" film Kenneth Branagh had a conversation with him after "Star Trek," in which Hemsworth played James Kirk's father, came out. "I think J.J. Abrams and Kenneth had a conversation," he said. "The initial audition I sent, or the tape was with my mum and I, and my mum was reading as Anthony Hopkins. And I don't know, maybe it was her read that somehow influenced or swayed the vote there."
Yay mum!
That may be the cutest thing I've ever read. His brother is almost Thor, he gets Thor after a bad audition, and his mom may be partially responsible. His manager was involved as well, according to an interview with W Magazine. Chris Hemsworth mentioned that he had been intimidated by Branagh, saying that to him, Branagh is Shakespeare. Then his manager called Branagh back up. "My manager said, 'If you liked Liam, maybe you'll also like his older brother.' This time, I was pissed off. I didn't care about Shakespeare anymore; swagger got me the part."
Thor definitely has swagger, I'll give him that. Though to be honest, I don't think that's the thing that makes Thor, Thor. I think it's the heart and the humor behind the swagger. That's the thing that makes him so likable. He's the friendly surfer god that makes you laugh. I mean, he's also very pretty, but it's the funny part that's appealing. Speaking of funny, Hemsworth did say in a different interview with the magazine that part of his motivation the second time around was sibling rivalry.
Thors for the win
Even Liam has weighed in on this. He told GQ (via UPI), "We're not generally looked at in the same age bracket. Thor was the only time when we were really up against each other. I never really wanted to do it. I always felt I was too young for it — I was screen testing when I was 18. The other guys in it were all late 20s or early 30s. I didn't feel Thor-ish."
Nope. He's Gale-ish from "Hunger Games." It does seem like it worked out the way it was supposed to. An 18-year-old Thor wouldn't have worked opposite Natalie Portman's Jane, now Mighty Thor. Either way, hail Thor Odinson, and welcome Mighty Thor. Both of your arms are a delight. Also, Liam, Gale's arms are very nice as well.
"Thor: Love and Thunder" will hit theaters on July 8, 2022.