Chris Hemsworth ‘Taking Time Off’

Chris Hemsworth disclosed to Vanity Fair that he intends to take a significant amount of time off from work after his press tour for the Disney+ series "Limitless" concludes. The actor who plays "Thor" Chris Hemsworth meets with a physician in the fifth episode of the series, where it is learned that Hemsworth has a genetic propensity for Alzheimer's disease. The APOE4 gene, which has been linked in studies to an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, is present in two copies in his genetic makeup—one from his mother and the other from his father, according to Vanity Fair.

Hemsworth is now eight to ten times more likely to develop the disease, despite his claim that "it's not like I've been handed my resignation." Alzheimer's disease has recently been identified in Hemsworth's grandfather.

"It really triggered something in me to want to take some time off," he explained. "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."

It's not a pre-deterministic gene, but it is a strong indication, Hemsworth said in reference to his own predisposition diagnosis. It was probably viewed as more determinant ten years ago. 

Hemsworth's discovery of his inherited propensity for Alzheimer's during the filming of "Limitless" also prompted him to meet with death doulas in preparation for the series finale and face his impending death. Hemsworth claimed that each of these encounters motivated him to take a break from acting.

"It really triggered something in me to want to take some time off," Hemsworth 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," he added. "Be with the kids, be with my wife."

Hemsworth has already completed production on movies such as Netflix's "Extraction 2" and George Miller's "Mad Max: Fury Road" prequel "Furiosa." The actor said that Disney offered him a version of "Limitless" that cut out the diagnosis, but he was adamant about leaving it in.