Chris Hemsworth
"Avengers" star Chris Hemsworth says he was "blown away" by the welcome he received in India while shooting for his upcoming action drama "Extraction", which is predominantly set in the subcontinent. Hemsworth, who enjoys a huge fan following in the country thanks to his portrayal of God of Thunder Thor, had shared videos of hundreds of people who had lined up the streets of Ahmedabad and Mumbai to watch him shoot the film.
The fan mania and logistics were partly responsible for the production to be shifted to a quiet suburb near Bangkok, Thailand, but Hemsworth has fond memories of the time he spent in India."We had such a great time in India. People were beyond welcoming. I've never had that kind of response. I was blown away. I thought I was Beatles or something," the actor told PTI during an interaction with select international media on the sets of the Netflix film.
"It gives you a false sense of security. I felt more important than I was. When I go back to Australia, no one really cares," the 36-year-old actor added.
Hemsworth plays Tyler Rake, a black market mercenary in the film, who embarks on a deadly mission when he’s enlisted to rescue the kidnapped son of an imprisoned international crime lord.
The film, based on an original script by “Avengers: Infinity War and “Avengers: Endgame” co-director Joe Russo, is scheduled to release on April 24.
The film marks the directorial debut of Sam Hargrave, who has worked as a stunt coordinator as well as the body double of "Captain America" star Chris Evans. Indian actor Randeep Hooda plays a key role in the film, so does newcomer Rudhraksh Jaiswal.
Hemsworth is confident that the film will appeal to an international audience as it is produced by the Russo Brothers and is set in the Indian subcontinent. "It was something that I haven't seen a lot in this setting. It has some beautiful set pieces and it gave me a chance to work and interact with wonderful people. We had such a great time in India,” the actor recalled.
The Australian star had some of the kindest things to say about his Indian co-stars, praising Hooda for his “stillness” and Jaiswal for his emotional performance in the film. "With Randeep, it's wonderful. Our first introduction was… We had three weeks of fighting each other and we both had our fair share of cuts and bruises. And actually a couple of times I nicked him, but it was by accident and I felt very embarrassed,” he said describing the intense combat sequences they shot in hot weather.
"He (Randeep) wasn't angry at me,” Hemsworth said with a laugh, adding, "He has been great to work with. And then we've had little moments of quiet dialogue." The actor, who shares a lot of screen time with Jaiswal, said the young actor reduced people on the sets to tears with his acting. "Rudy is amazing. I’m blown away by that kid… The way he takes direction is better than a lot of adults... With all honesty, he had us in tears a number of times. We would be chatting and just out of nowhere he pours his heart out and I'm like, 'I'm not supposed to be upset in this scene'… He will have a big career. He's very talented and just super eager to learn."
The working title of the film was "Dhaka" and that's where most of the action takes place but the production team shot majority of the scenes in India and then in a street near Bangkok, which was made to resemble a typically chaotic market in Bangladesh.
