Chris Hemsworth reveals 'Dancing With the Stars' almost cost him Thor role

Chris Hemsworth has revealed that his appearance on Australia’s Dancing With the Stars in 2006 almost derailed his career-defining role as Thor.

The 42-year-old actor finished fifth on the reality dance competition, a decision he made to earn money while pursuing his Hollywood dreams. 

But when Marvel executives discovered clips of him dancing online after his successful audition for the 2011 blockbuster Thor, it nearly caused a hiccup in his casting.

Hemsworth told The Times magazine, “[Kevin Feige] said, ‘I went downstairs and I showed all the staff your audition. 

Everyone’s like, ‘Great!’ Then someone googled me and said, ‘Oh, he did Dancing With the Stars.’ And Kevin said, ‘Hang on, what?’ It was early days for Marvel. They were so nervous. Feige had a little glitch of hesitation. And then he was like, ‘No, it’s fine.’”

Reflecting on his decision to join the show, Hemsworth said, “I did it to make money to go to Los Angeles but I [also] thought, ‘I’m sick of taking myself so seriously.’”

Before landing the role of the Norse superhero, Hemsworth faced doubts about his acting ambitions. He took theatre studies toward the end of high school but recalled that his drama teacher wasn’t convinced he could make it. 

“I was very sporty, so I wasn’t seen as a serious actor. I felt that sort of impostor thing. I never got any good parts. And then I said, ‘I don’t want to do theatre anyway. I want to make movies. I’m going to Hollywood.’ And [the drama teacher would] roll her eyes, like, ‘Yeah, sure. Good luck, kid.’”

Hemsworth eventually found his footing with the role of Kim Hyde on the Australian soap Home and Away, though he admitted that anxiety often weighed on him. “I would beat myself up about it. 

I had so much anxiety,” he said. Advice from a director helped him reframe his mindset: “Once you return that serve, or that shot, you’re thinking about the next one. You can’t be thinking about the previous one. That really helped.”

Since then, Hemsworth has become a Hollywood A-lister, starring as Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and balancing life as a father of three with wife Elsa Pataky. 

Looking back, the Dancing With the Stars experience remains a quirky but pivotal step in his journey.