Playing a god became a safety net': Chris Hemsworth opens up about Thor, money and his insecurities

"The role, which spanned nine films, put him up among the world's highest paid actors and made him a global pin-up. Yet the confidence was, in part, a construction. The character you see in interviews, he says, easing into the chaise longue, and the presentation of myself over the last two decades working in Hollywood, it's me but it's a creation too. It's what I thought people wanted to see."

"Behind the scenes, he was dealing with severe performance anxiety and panic attacks, but the physical transformation helped him feel less intimidated. Training his body, lowering his voice, inhabiting a more imposing posture, he felt able to occupy the space. I felt like, OK, cool, no, one can fuck with me.' Playing a god became a safety net. It fooled people into thinking I was that confident, that certain."

Chris Hemsworth became synonymous with an invulnerable, assured idea of masculinity through his long run as Thor, achieving global fame and top earnings. The confident persona partly functioned as a deliberate construction and a safety net that concealed severe performance anxiety and panic attacks. Physical transformation—training his body, lowering his voice and adopting an imposing posture—enabled him to feel less intimidated and occupy space. In a new leading role in Crime 101, Hemsworth portrays a character defined by doubt and vulnerability and felt exposed without the usual vocal or postural shields. The performance required undoing the protective traits that had long defined his public image.

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