In Beast, your new film about an MMA fighter, you play Gabriel: a dirtbag guy with a dirtbag goatee. Did you base him off any dirtbags you\u2019ve met?<\/p>\n
Oh, that\u2019s all me. I\u2019m channelling my inner dirtbag. He has some inadequacy issues. He\u2019s like a used car salesman; he looks fair and feels foul. But there are parts of me in him \u2013 I\u2019m wearing my own snake skin boots for the whole film. I ended up actually keeping one of his suits, which I might have worn to a couple of premieres, which is pretty funny! [Laughs]<\/p>\n
It is so fun to play characters like him. It\u2019s nice to be off the leash, right? It\u2019s nice to have permission to do and say things that give people the ick.<\/p>\n
I understand the Hemsworths really love MMA and UFC.<\/p>\n
We do! I\u2019ve trained for a long time \u2013 nothing professional or anything, I just dabble in boxing, Brazilian jiujitsu and muay thai. It was a big part of growing up in my household with my idiot brothers, being able to protect myself from the wild throws and kicks that they\u2019d send my way. Every Sunday I\u2019m usually at either my place, Chris\u2019s place or Liam\u2019s place, and it\u2019s UFC Sunday. The kids will come. There\u2019s always a lot of shouting at the TV and usually we all end up wrestling. Liam will tell you he\u2019s never been beaten at wrestling but don\u2019t believe a single word he says!<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
What are you secretly really good at?<\/p>\n
I just landed a front flip on the trampoline the other day, in front of my 14-year-old daughter. I haven\u2019t seen her so in awe for so long. She was like, \u201cGod, you\u2019re really old and you\u2019re doing flips!\u201d I\u2019m not old. I\u2019m 45, mate!<\/p>\n
You have done three films with Russell Crowe<\/a> but you\u2019ve never been in a scene with him. What\u2019s going on?<\/p>\n Yeah! Bloody hell. I think I\u2019ve missed out! I don\u2019t think I\u2019m going to get another shot at this!<\/p>\n Russell is an icon. He\u2019s one of the greatest actors. He is a powerhouse on set. He\u2019s a force of nature when he gets going. He can be abrasive but when you\u2019re onside with him he\u2019s absolutely wonderful. He is a good champion of the little man, the young man, the up-and-coming guys. When [Crowe\u2019s 2022 film] Poker Face almost went under<\/a>, he took on everything and saved 200 jobs. The film was here or there but the fact he recognised a whole lot of people were going to be out of work if he didn\u2019t step up \u2013 that\u2019s a rare commitment, and I take my hat off to him.<\/p>\n What is the best and worst thing about being in a famous family?<\/p>\n I think there\u2019s an assumption that life is easy if you have the Hemsworth name, that you\u2019re gonna get roles super easily. In my experience, it\u2019s actually been a lot more difficult and it comes with a stigma. So I have to be very aware of my craft, making sure I\u2019ve really prepared. That sounds like a no-brainer but I\u2019ve had to really work, really dive deep into that part of my game, you know? But I love it. I\u2019ve had all these beautiful character roles. But there is kind of baggage that\u2019s left over from [Chris and Liam]. Most of it is, \u201cOh, you\u2019re really short!\u201d [Laughs]<\/p>\n When I walk in the room, I have to be very specific about who I am. But it still gets confusing. Every now and again someone calls me Liam. I actually got introduced at the Beast premiere as Liam Hemsworth, by Rob Carlton. I\u2019m going to call him out! Fuck you, Rob! He came up after and said, \u201cI\u2019m so sorry. I had a brain fart.\u201d<\/p>\n Liam Hemsworth and Luke Hemsworth in Land of Bad. Photograph: Signature Entertainment<\/p>\n What movie scarred you for life as a kid?<\/p>\n The NeverEnding Story is probably one of my favourite films of all time. It\u2019s the first VHS I remember actually receiving as mine, when I was maybe five or six years old. We watched that film until the tape stopped playing. The scene where Artax the horse gets stuck in the swamps of sadness? It\u2019s so iconic and heartbreaking and fantastic. To this day I still remember being very upset about that.<\/p>\n I also remember watching The Exorcist in our house in Sassafras when I was about 12 or 14. My parents had gone out and we were home alone. When it was windy, the windows would kind of flex and go boink. So during The Exorcist, the most terrifying film that I\u2019d ever seen up to that date, the windows are making noises.<\/p>\n Did you know [The Exorcist actor] Linda Blair has a dog rescue foundation in California? We found this dog online and I was like, is that the same Linda Blair? We inquired about this dog and 10 minutes later I get this phone call: \u201cLuke, I love your family! Come out and see the dog!\u201d So my daughter Harper and I went somewhere out in the hills past Los Angeles and Linda Blair proceeded to bring out about 75 different dogs. We took home the first dog, the one we went out there to see. Her name is Blu, and she\u2019s a California rescue mutt.<\/p>\n Allow Instagram content?<\/p>\n This article includes content provided by Instagram. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click ‘Allow and continue’.<\/p>\n What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?<\/p>\n