Chris Hemsworth Says Brad Pitt’s Performance in ‘Legends of the Fall’ Inspired Him to Become an Actor

Chris Hemsworth knew he wanted to be an actor the moment he saw Brad Pitt’s performance in Legends of the Fall — and his desire to chase his dream, he said, “became my obsession.” Find out why Pitt, as well as his desire to provide a better life for his family, was his inspiration.

Hemsworth found inspiration in Pitt’s performance

In the June issue of GQ Australia, the Thor star explained how one of Pitt’s early performances sparked an interest in acting or, as he shared, an “obsession” with the career prospect.

Hemsworth was struck by Pitt’s “range” and “charisma” in the 1994 film, so much so, that it solidified what he wanted to do with his life. He took a course at Sydney’s Screenwise film and television school and shared that “overnight, it became my obsession.”

Hemsworth’s family was his other motivator

While it’s undeniable that Pitt alone is a magnificent motivator, Hemsworth also felt that if his acting career took off, he could provide a better life for his family.

“We had grown up with very little money,” the actor shared. “My parents struggled with bills and financial pressures and I thought if I’m an actor, I can get us out of it, I can take care of my family.”

His career took off and hasn’t shown any signs of slowing — in part because he didn’t want to turn down projects for fear of losing momentum.

“You need to have an obsessive approach,” he explained. Fear and worry kept him moving forward, as he shared, “just like anything where the odds are stacked against you and it’s a one-in-a-million chance that you’re going to get your foot in the door. But once you are on that train, not a day goes by where you don’t think it’s going to be taken away, all of a sudden.”

Hemsworth’s success hasn’t silenced that worry, either. “You still have this fear and anxiety programmed in you that it’s all going to slip away,” he explained. “But I must admit that once I had paid off my parents’ house and taken care of my family, I had a moment where I thought: what now? What’s driving this?”

Hemsworth is putting his worries aside for his family

Hemsworth might still have some of that fear but his life with wife Elsa Pataky and their three children has him taking stock of his career and weighing whether being away from his family is worth it.

“Every job I’d take, every time I’d go off on these extended trips, it got harder and harder,” Hemsworth explained. “For a little while you don’t think the kids notice and then you realize they do.”

He added, “I absolutely want to continue to make films that I’m proud of, but that can also wait. 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.”