Why Chris Hemsworth Is the Guy to Follow When Life Goes Off the Rails
Chris Hemsworth took a break from acting only to re-establish balance in his life.
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“This year I probably won’t shoot anything. I just want to be at home now with my kids.”
Chris Hemsworth told this to Australia’s Daily Telegraph in 2019 when he was at the peak of his career.
At that time, he was the world’s second-highest-paid actor. But this Melbourne-born genius didn’t care and decided to take a year off from acting only to be a stay-home-dad and spend time with his kids.
He explained, “If you went back 10 years and asked me what would be my dream scenario, this is kind of it. I can now sit back, enjoy and appreciate it, and stop chasing [movies].”
But for god’s sake, never think that his success came too easily. No, — it’s not. Chris earned every bit of it with years of relentless works, struggles, disappointments, fear, and rejections.
Chris Hemsworth married Elsa Pataky, a Spanish model and actress, in December 2010. Later, the couple had their daughter India Rose born in May 2012, and twin sons Sasha and Tristan, born in March 2014.
As the family got bigger, Elsa, despite being a more prominent actor than Chris (at that time), sacrificed her acting career only to raise their kids.
“I’ve followed my ambitions and I have worked where I’ve been able to, but since 2012 my energy has gone practically 100 percent into my family,” Elsa told El País in 2014. “I think it’s important to enjoy the moment. Unlike other women I am lucky enough to be able to be with my children 24 hours a day and I don’t want to waste even a second.”
“We have swapped roles,” Elsa further explained. “Until not long ago, he was the husband. During the time we lived in London [when Hemsworth was shooting the two Thor films and The Avengers] it was me they stopped for photos, and he had to take the picture. Now Chris is at a wonderful moment in his career and I am there to support him. I feel very proud to be his wife. I was Elsa Pataky for a long time and I don’t mind being Mrs Chris Hemsworth — although that does sound a bit old-fashioned.”
It was indeed a great example of professional sacrifice that we rarely see from established Hollywood celebrities. Now let’s go back to the Chris’s part.
Before becoming Thor, Chris Hemsworth was almost a nobody in Hollywood.
For the first ten years, it was a pure struggle. Chris was just another actor chancing his luck with auditions after auditions but no significant role. He was trying everything and doing his best, yet nothing was working in his favor.
Recalling those tough years, Chris said, “There was nothing else I wanted to do. I had not a shadow of a doubt that I was going to go to Hollywood and work. As I started auditioning a whole lot of doubt chirped up and fear and anxiety and ‘What the hell am I attempting to get into?’”
Even after his role as Captain Kirk’s father in 2009’s Star Trek, Chris was disappointed as hell.
Then in 2011 came the movie ‘Thor’ and literally changed everything. All his hard works started to pay off. New roles were coming up, and Chris was putting his heart and soul into his works. And the world was just loving it.
From 2011 to 2019, Chris acted in so many wonderful movies, including The Avengers, The Cabin in the Woods, Rush, Ghostbusters, Bad Times at the El Royale, etc.
As the work pressure was huge, managing time for his family in Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia, was a struggle for Chris. Elsa was doing her job there as a mom, sacrificing her acting career. But Chris was failing to balance his work and personal life.
The gap between the family and Chris was increasing every single day. Also, Chris was sensing the void inside him despite his tremendous success as an actor. He told GQ Australia that going on extended trips became harder and harder with every new job.
Then one day, while leaving home for a work trip, his daughter India Rose called him “‘Papa! Papa! Papa!” instead of what she used to say ‘Yeah, see you, daddy. Cool.' This incident really surprised Chris because his daughter used to call him daddy (not papa).
Chris realized that his absences were getting his kids far away from him.
“For a little while you don’t think the kids notice and then you realize they do. I absolutely want to continue to make films that I’m proud of, but that can also wait,” Chris says. “Now what’s more important is my kids are at an age I don’t want to miss. And I’d hate to look back in 20 years and go, ‘Right, let’s get to work as a parent’ and I’ve missed it all.”
Finally, in 2019, at the peak of his career, Chris Hemsworth decided to take a break from acting and enjoy his life as a father of his three lovely kids: twin sons Sasha and Tristan, and daughter India Rose.
And this is how the world got a different superhero; a real one who knows when to stop chasing and enjoy the fruits of his labor. If you explore Chris Hemworth’s activities, you will see that how happy he is with his wife and kids. And that’s the thing that nobody can buy with money or worldwide fame.
At this point, you may think this article is all about Chris Hemsworth and his choices. But it’s not. It’s more about you and me and our blind pursuit of fame and success.
It’s about recognizing the time when we need to take a break (like Chris Hemsworth) and rethink our actions. It’s about knowing everything and then choosing happiness over career, fame, or money.
The world teaches you that when you are at the peak of your career, you should capitalize on the opportunity and work harder than ever before. People tell you to earn more, buy mansions, have dashing cars, attend fancy parties, upgrade social status, and all the other material things that exhibit your worth.
But surprisingly, nobody tells you that you may lose the most crucial things of your life while focusing too much on your career.
Nobody tells you that if you want to become happier, you must strengthen your relationship with your family. And it’s far more important than your obsession with money, fame, or career.
Nobody tells you that when you have enough of what you intended to achieve, you should stop a little and enjoy the success with your family (instead of chasing another milestone).
Nobody tells you that you should take a break like Chris or his wife Elsa at some point in your life and re-establish the balance and enjoy what life offers.
Nobody tells you that there are a few things that you cannot regain despite having billions. You cannot rewind and see your kids growing or have some amazing moments with them. You cannot postpone happiness as no one can be happy in the future.
Spend time with your wife and kids — play with them, visit new places, watch movies together, camp in the wilderness, and witness your kids grow. Value the present and be present in your family.
Of course, you will work hard to turn your dreams into reality (whatever that may be) because those are important to you.
But make sure that while chasing your dreams, you are not alienating your family and missing your happy moments. And make sure that you have a life outside of what you do for a living.
Thank you for reading.
Sources: El País, Mirror, People, Wikipedia, Boredpanda, Cheatsheet, Hola
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