Chris Hemsworth says he's 'taking time off acting' after Alzheimer's discovery
Chris Hemsworth has announced he will be taking a ‘good chunk of time off’ from acting after making a shocking health discovery while filming his show Limitless.
The new docu-series, which is streaming on Disney Plus, sees Hemsworth exploring different ways humans can live longer and healthier lives - you can check out a trailer here:
And in the fifth episode, titled Memory, the 39-year-old makes a shocking discovery about his own health.
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During an interview with Vanity Fair, the Aussie actor explained that he underwent a test that showed he had two copies of the gene APOE4, which has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
He explained: “They took all my blood-work and did a bunch of tests and the plan was to on-camera tell me all the results and then talk about how you can improve this and that.
“And Peter Attia, who is the longevity doctor in that episode, and overseeing a lot of the show, called [Limitless creator] Darren [Aronofsky] and said, ‘I don’t want to tell him this on camera. We need to have an off-side conversation and see if he even wants this to be in the show.’
“It was pretty shocking because he called me up and he told me.”
Hemsworth went on to say: “It’s not a pre-deterministic gene, but it is a strong indication. Ten years ago, I think it was more thought of as determinant.”
He then said he is ‘eight to 10 times more likely’ to have Alzheimer’s disease in the future.
Hemsworth’s grandfather is currently diagnosed with the disease.
In the final episode of the show, Hemsworth looked into end-of-life care and facing death - including interviews with ‘death doula’ and people who work in palliative care.
He explained that doing the show made him want to spend more time with his family.
“It really triggered something in me to want to take some time off,” he said.
“And since we finished the show, I've been completing the things I was already contracted to do. Now when I finish this tour this week, I'm going home and I'm going to have a good chunk of time off and just simplify. Be with the kids, be with my wife.”
The actor said the show’s creators offered to do a version of the episode where they cut his own diagnosis, but he wanted to leave it in as a ‘motivator’ for others.
Limitless is streaming now on Disney Plus.
Topics: Chris Hemsworth, Health, Disney Plus
Claire Reid