Chris Hemsworth might be a big movie star now but this wasn’t always guaranteed during the early part of his career. He made his living on Home and Away, the popular Australian soap opera that many actors struggled to move on from. But move on he did and he gained his first major movie role in 2009’s Star Trek as George Kirk, the father of you-know-who!
From here, he starred in A Perfect Getaway and Ca$h before earning the role of Thor in the movie of the same name, and it was this that propelled him into the Hollywood stratosphere.
Today, Hemsworth is one of the most popular actors on the planet and if you’re a fan, you might want to add some or all of the following to your movie watchlist.
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Before Taika Waititi directed Hemsworth in Thor: Love and Thunder, he teamed up with the actor for this earlier movie within the MCU. This one is arguably better than the Norse God’s most recent entry and it’s certainly a lot more fun than Thor: The Dark World, which disappointed many upon its release.
In this one, the Prince of Asgard finds himself imprisoned on the planet Sakaar but thankfully, help is at hand in the form of the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), who team up with Thor to help him get off the planet and save Asgard from Hela (Cate Blanchett), the fearsome Death Goddess. Hemsworth is terrifically funny in this bright and colourful superhero flick which is as quirky as you would expect with someone like Waititi at the helm.
Extraction (2020)
With a name like Tyler Rake, you know that Hemsworth’s character is either going to be a bad-ass for hire or a lowly gardener. Luckily for us, it’s the former (or unluckily, if you wanted to see the actor with his top off while mowing the lawn). This political action thriller was written by the Russo Brothers (Avengers: Endgame) and it stars Hemsworth as a mercenary who is enlisted to rescue the kidnapped son of an intentional crime lord.
Hemsworth needed to get into shape for this high-octane movie as he was required to do some of the stuntwork himself during some of the action sequences. It was his dedication to the role that made it such a success and if you’re a fan of this one, you’ll be glad to know that Extraction 2 is due for release in 2023.
Bad Times At The El Royale (2018)
Directed by Drew Goddard (The Cabin In The Woods), this entertaining mystery thriller is about a group of strangers who check in to the hotel of the title. Bad times are guaranteed as they all have dark, personal secrets that impact on one another as the movie runs its course.
Hemsworth stars as Billy Lee, a Southern cult leader who is the instigator of some of the mayhem that takes place. He is fun to watch, especially during the scene when he ties up the El Royale guests and dances to a Deep Purple song.
But he’s just one part of a great cast, which also includes Jeff Bridges as a shady priest and Jon Hamm as a mysterious travelling salesman. As with Goddard’s earlier movie, you should expect the unexpected.
Blackhat (2015)
Blackhat isn’t Michael Mann’s best movie – it’s far less memorable than Heat and Collateral – but while it wasn’t as critically well-received as those aforementioned movies, it is still entertaining, partly thanks to Hemsworth who stars as Nick Hathaway, a modern-day Robin Hood who hacks the rich to give to the poor.
After being sent to prison for his criminal misdeeds, Nick’s skills are called upon by the FBI to hunt down the people behind a high-level cybercrime network. Thankfully, Nick doesn’t spend all of his time behind a computer screen – the movie would have been quite boring if he did – as the movie features some propulsive action scenes that give Hemsworth the opportunity to do more with his hands than typing.
Ghostbusters (2016)
When there’s something strange in the neighbourhood, who are you gonna call? The Ghostbusters of course, although if you were one of the many people who slammed this movie for its female-led group of spook hunters, you will be disappointed if Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig turn up on your doorstep, proton blaster in hand, instead of Bill Murray et al.
But despite the negative reaction from some, this is actually a pretty decent movie, with a great cast, lots of big laughs and some excellent special effects. Hemsworth essentially takes on the Janine role from the original movies although his character is far more goofy and idiotic than that receptionist ever was. This is a movie that deserves another chance so if you can put aside the fact that it’s ‘different’ from the other Ghostbusters movies, you might have a good time with this one.
Vacation (2015)
Why has there never been a sequel to this? It’s an outrage, as while Vacation isn’t quite as good as the Chevy Chase original and the classic Christmas follow-up, it’s still very funny and is a lot better than European Vacation and Vegas Vacation, the two low points within this comedy franchise.
Ed Helms stars as Rusty, the son of the hapless Clark Griswold, and he is entertaining to watch as he takes his family on a road trip to Wally World, the fictional theme park that was the final stop on the Griswold family road trip in the first movie. Hemsworth makes a brief but memorable appearance as Stone Crandall, Rusty’s brother-in-law, who steals all of the scenes he is in as the well-chiseled man with a rather large appendage.
Rush (2013)
Ron Howard’s sports film tells the real-life story of the rivalry between Formula 1 drivers James Hunt (Hemsworth) and Nicki Lauder (Daniel Bruhl) both on and off the race track. The racing scenes are as breathtaking as you would imagine but it’s the acting that impresses the most as both Hemsworth and Bruhl deliver what are arguably the best performances of their careers.
The film focuses on the 1976 F1 season and it climaxes at the rain-soaked Japanese Grand Prix where one of the two protagonists decides to quit the race early in protest at the dangerous driving conditions. This gives the other one the opportunity to take the lead and win the race but to say who would be a disservice to anybody who has not yet seen this exhilarating movie.
Snow White And The Huntsman (2012)
The original Disney animation was never like this! In this updated interpretation of the classic fairy tale, Kristen Stewart stars as the kick-ass Snow White who eventually teams up with the Huntsman (Hemsworth) to take down Queen Ravenna (Charlize Theron), her evil stepmother.
This is a wonderfully dark adaptation of the original tale that is often gorgeous to look at thanks to the excellent production design. The movie is a lot better than the same year’s Mirror Mirror, another take on the Snow White story, and is far superior to The Huntsman: Winter’s War, the prequel/sequel that came out a few years later.
Hemsworth is good fun as the Huntsman and proves that he is as good with an axe as he is with a hammer.
The Cabin In The Woods (2011)
Why do young people always insist on vacationing in a woodland cabin? Nothing good can from it as the protagonists from The Evil Dead, Cabin Fever, and Dead Shack can testify. The same can be said of the folks in this movie, including Curt (Hemsworth), who takes it upon himself to be the group leader of the foolish group of teens.
After renting a cabin in the woods, the characters in the movie soon begin to regret their decision to stay there when they fall victim to backwoods zombies and threats of another kind. To say any more would spoil the movie if you haven’t already seen it.
This isn’t your traditional kind of horror film – it’s more of a satire on the genre itself – but is well worth a watch for the various twists and turns that take place within the narrative.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Thor is a muscle-bound hero, right? Well, not in this movie, at least not during some of the earlier scenes, as he has put on weight and is more interested in drinking beer than saving the world. The reason for his physical and mental slump is obvious if you have seen Infinity War but thanks to the encouragement of Captain America and co, he is soon back to his old self and battling against Thanos and his monstrous minions.
This movie is one of the greatest superhero films of all time and is arguably the best of the MCU so far. Hemsworth is as good in this as he is in all of the other Thor movies and he manages to hold his own against the capable cast of actors and their superheroic characters who join him on the quest to take down the finger-snapping big bad.
And there we have it, our picks for our 10 favourite Chris Hemsworth movies!
What do you think of our list? Have we included your favourites? Or have we missed any must-watch movies? We love to hear from you so do feel free to let us know in the comments below!