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Chris Hemsworth Gets Vulnerable About “Trying to Find the Balance” Between Work and Family
At the end of a long day fighting intergalactic crime on screen, there’s nothing Chris Hemsworth loves more than coming home to his family. This month, Chris and his family dog, Sunny, were the cover stars of GQ Australia‘s May issue. In an interview with the publication, the dad of three opened up about what it’s like to balance parenting with his work life.
“I’ve spent probably 15 years in what felt like a marathon, a constant workload,” the Extraction star said. “So much of my energy has been geared towards that, and then having kids at the same time, I’ve been constantly trying to find the balance.” He added: “Every job I’d take, every time I’d go off on these extended trips, it got harder and harder. For a little while you don’t think the kids notice and then you realize they do.”
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Though Chris explained that he still wants to see what else the film industry has to offer and explore new roles, he made it clear that his family are his main priority. “Now what’s more important is my kids are at an age I don’t want to miss,” he said. “And I’d hate to look back in 20 years and go, ‘Right, let’s get to work as a parent’ and I’ve missed it all.”
Chris and his wife, Elsa Pataky, have three children: 7-year-old India Rose and 5-year-old twin boys Tristan and Sasha. With three young children to look after, Chris has encountered one of the biggest parenting struggles of staying at home with kids: homeschooling. “We’re very fortunate,” Chris said. “But we’re here at home and attempting to homeschool the kids, which is a feat in itself. They’re better students than I am a teacher, to be honest.”
Nowadays, Chris likes to share his films with his kids, who aren’t exactly amazed by his superhero persona. “I couldn’t be less cool in their eyes,” he admitted. “It’s nature’s way of telling me the truth. You can fall into a false sense of self-importance on a film set, where you feel you’re special, so it’s good to remind yourself that it’s not the case. And kids certainly drive that home.”