'It was a love letter to my father': Chris Hemsworth reveals fears he was letting fans 'too far in' with 'deeply personal' doc about his dad's battle with Alzheimer's

Chris Hemsworth has opened up on his recent documentary about his dad's battle with Alzheimer's, calling the 'deeply personal' experience a 'love letter to my father'.

The Hollywood star, 42, released A Road Trip To Remember last year, which followed him and his father Craig, 70, revisiting his childhood homes across Australia, following Craig's diagnosis with early-stage Alzheimer's. 

It came as a follow-up to his 2022 docuseries Limitless, where the actor learned he had two copies of the APOE4 gene – one from each parent – meaning he was eight to ten times more likely to develop the same disease.

Opening up about releasing the emotional and heartfelt documentary in a new interview with The Guardian, Chris admitted that he struggled with the idea of going public with his innermost feelings.

He said: 'I wondered if I was letting people too far in. Are they no longer going to believe in the action star or the Marvel character? And do I want people to know my fears and insecurities to this level?'

But while it wasn't easy, the Thor star sees the doc as one of the most important things he’s ever made, because of what it did for Craig.

'It was so deeply personal. It was a love letter to my father,' he said. 'It empowered him for a period, and stimulated memories that were being taken away from him.'

While Chris said that following the film, he's had people who also are battling Alzheimer’s tell him how they wanted their children to see it. 

He explained that his dad's diagnosis has also had a profound effect on his own mentality about his career, with the actor able to slow down, instead of feeling the pressure to constantly be working and making money like he used to.

The Aussie star is the proud dad to daughter India, 13, and twin boys, Sasha and Tristan, 11, with his wife Elsa Pataky.

'My appetite for racing forward has really been reined in,' he said. 'I’ve become more aware of the fragility of things. 

'You start thinking, "My dad won’t be here for ever." And my kids are now 11 and 13. Those nights where they’d fight over sleeping in our bed – suddenly they’re not happening any more.'

Last week, Chris became overwhelmed with emotion as he recalled the heartbreaking moment he found out that Craig had Alzheimer's.

Speaking about his father's disease, which has become more noticeable in the past two years, on Jay Shetty's podcast On Purpose, he explained that it had been a 'real shock to the system' for his family.

'I remember vividly that conversation of him sort of telling me not to be concerned about it', he said.  

'And then about two or three years later, my mom's saying to me, I think we've got to get dad checked because there's these signs and things I'm concerned about.

'The obvious one's memory and sort of slight mood, changes and shifts and forgetfulness and so on. So he went and got tested and found out he had two copies of the APOE4 four, as did my mum.'

He continued: 'So then by default, me, Luke, and Liam all have two copies of APOE4. So this sort of anomaly of genetic combinations.

'I was immediately hit with the reality of what that meant for him because I had just gone through "Ah it's a long way down the track, don't worry, push it aside". 

'Then all of a sudden it was right in front of us and, and it was confronting, but again, I think "we'll figure it out mentality" was still very prominent. 

'But then as it began to get worse it became a real sort of shaking into the moment and a real sort of shock to the system. Everything we thought was solid and true and consistent was gonna dramatically change and shift.'

Chris is currently on the promotional trail for his latest film, Crime 101, opposite a star-studded cast that includes Halle Berry, Mark Ruffalo, Barry Keoghan, Monica Barbaro, Corey Hawkins, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Nick Nolte.

The flick is directed and co-written by Bart Layton, marking his return to the crime-thriller genre following his 2018 hit American Animals.

Based on Winslow's novella of the same name, Crime 101 follows a string of slick, organised jewellery heists along the Pacific Coast, initially believed to be the work of Colombian cartels.

But one sharp-eyed detective isn't convinced - and soon zeroes in on a very different suspect.

Teasing the movie - which will hit theatres on February 13 - on The Graham Norton Show on Friday alongside Halle, Chris described it as as 'sleek and sexy' with complex characters.

'It is a throwback to the 70s, 80s and 90s heist movies that we all love, with a contemporary feel,' he said.

'There are complex characters and a deep level of emotion, and it's entertaining, sleek, sexy, and visually pretty stunning. It was the best script I had read in years.'