Chris Hemsworth has revealed that he’s taking a break from acting after learning he has an increased risk for Alzheimer’s Disease.
While working on National Geographic’s Limitless, his new docuseries about pushing back on the natural decline that comes with time and aging, the star of “Thor” and “Extraction” underwent a battery of genetic tests to see what, if anything, the future might have waiting for him, etched into his very DNA. What he discovered, he says in the show, was “my biggest fear.”
His makeup includes two copies of the gene APOE4, one from his mother, the other from his father, which studies have linked to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
One in four people carry a single copy of the gene, but only 2 to 3% of the population have both, according to a 2021 study by the National Institutes of Health.
Chris recalled what it was like to learn about this result—one where he is “eight to 10 times more likely” to develop Alzheimer’s in the future.
“I didn’t really know what to think,” he said. “I was like, ‘Am I supposed to be worried? Is this concerning?'”
He eventually learned that the gene isn’t “pre-deterministic” but rather a “strong indication” for him. Ultimately, the news made the docuseries all the more impactful for him.
“The show, which initially was an exploration of longevity and, of course, should be fun, became even more relevant and important for me, even more poignant than I ever thought it would be,” he said. “It was a really good catalyst to dive into everything I needed to be doing in either the prevention front or the management front.”
“My concern was I just didn’t want to manipulate it and overdramatize it, and make it into some sort of hokey grab at empathy, or whatever, for entertainment,” Hemsworth says. “It’s not like I’ve been handed my resignation.”
