For Marvel fans, it’s practically impossible to watch the trailer for Men in Black: International and not think back to the last time we saw Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth together in 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok, but according to Hemsworth, working on this new sci-fi reboot can be a very different experience from playing the God of Thunder.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the Australian star explained that Agent H has a more down-to-Earth presence than the actor’s most famous role, admitting that he sometimes has trouble remembering that he’s not playing a superhero anymore.
“Thor’s stunts are wildly complicated, but it feels like an atomic bomb goes off with each of those [hammer] hits.” Hemsworth said. “Everything is sort of magnified to a level that is so nonhuman. Whereas this, we have to keep grounding it. There’s always a part of it where I’m like, ‘Can I do a flip or just sort of leap from this building to that one?’ and they’re like, ‘Nah, humans don’t do that sort of thing,’ So they have to rein me in occasionally.”
Hemsworth’s claims are backed up by the film’s stunt coordinator and second-unit director Wade Eastwood, who recalls how the actor’s old habits from the MCU would sometimes reemerge on the International set.
“I’ve seen the crossover from the Marvel world,” Eastwood added. “Occasionally Chris might reach his arm out and expect a hammer to fly in, but that’s about it. He’s been drifting cars on this and doing all sorts of things that are completely different than anything he’s done before.”
Of course, one part of Hemsworth’s Marvel career that we’re all hoping will translate to the upcoming Men in Black movie is his chemistry with Thompson, who admitted to finding the experience of working with her Ragnarok co-star in a new franchise to be a little strange.
“I didn’t think we’d be back together so soon,” Thompson joked. “I thought we’d probably both be in capes. So I was like, ‘We’re in suits?’”
Capes or suits, it’s evident from the trailer reactions that a lot of people are very happy to see the pair back together, though Thompson and Hemsworth won’t be the only familiar figures to feature in the franchise’s first entry since 2012’s Men in Black 3. For one thing, Emma Thompson is reprising her role as Agent O, while Liam Neeson makes his series debut as the head of MIB’s UK branch. What’s more, we know that Rebecca Ferguson of Mission: Impossible fame and Kumail Nanjiani from The Big Sick have each been cast as aliens.
We’ll be seeing this team in action when Men in Black International hits theaters on June 14th, 2019, though not before Hemsworth plays the God of Thunder at least one more time when Avengers: Endgame comes out on April 26th.