The premiere of Tyler Rake on Netflix three years ago became quite a success for the streaming giant. The debut in the director’s chair of the actor and specialist in action scenes Sam Hargrave was pure spectacle and did not give rest to the viewer. Chris Hemsworth played a covert operations mercenary hired to rescue the kidnapped son of an Indian mafia kingpin who is in prison. A suicidal mission that Tyler’s tough guy fulfills by leaving his skin behind in multiple confrontations with the enemy. As expected, the sequel did not take long to get started and in Tyler Rake 2, which arrives on the platform on Friday the 16th, the Australian actor shows off his muscles again after miraculously surviving the outcome of the first film. film to deliver chewing gum to all those who prevent him from carrying out his new task: to get the wife and children of a ruthless Georgian gangster out of prison.
The film, shot between locations in Vienna and Prague, again features Franco-Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani as co-star and outdoes her predecessor in fast-paced and highly risky action scenes, with a 21-minute shot sequence that begins with the escape from the prison, continues with the fight against the numerous inmates in the yard, goes through a fast-paced chase of several vehicles and ends with the landing of a helicopter on top of a moving train.
And if that wasn’t enough, Joe Russo’s script explores the protagonist’s existential crisis through a family tragedy that haunts him. “Tyler Rake is a person who goes for free. On the one hand, he has that heroic side, but also a certain cowardice. What appealed to me is that he doesn’t always do what’s right. He has a huge burden of guilt, of shame, because he is a human being and these are things that the audience can connect with. What has he done in his life? How can it somehow be redeemed? All these traits give him a certain spontaneity and he is also a dangerous character because he does not follow the rules. All these layers of the character form a creative part that I really like to explore as an actor. And it was important that he was a character with the moral compass in the right place”, explains Hemsworth in a chat with a small group of media, including La Vanguardia, in his recent visit to Madrid to promote the film.
The burly performer, who will blow out 40 candles next August 11, owes his great popularity to the role of Thor in the Marvel universe, with whom he will return in Avengers: Secret Wars in 2026. “I like to diversify. Even within the character of Thor you always try to bring something different and reinvent yourself. I try to find creatively interesting things and work surrounded by an equally interesting team. You have to find the right balance. For example, audiences will see Tom Cruise do what he knows how to do. If he suddenly does something different, no one will see him. It’s not necessarily a bad thing to have a comfort zone. Sometimes you like to break out of the mold, other times it’s good to fit in, but you have to find that creative balance. I have to admit that Thor has opened a lot of doors for me. I don’t know what I would do without him, but I like to try new paths”, he admits.
In their visit to the program El hormiguero, both Queen Letícia and Infanta Sofia took the opportunity to meet the attractive actor in person, partner of the Spanish actress Elsa Pataky, with whom he has three children. “What? what? I can’t talk about that”, he says, avoiding the answer with a contagious smile. But he does answer how he feels knowing that he is a man so desired by the female audience. “I could say it’s thanks to my parents, but the answer would be that I ask myself the same questions as anyone and, although I appreciate the compliment, I try not to obsess over it. You hear flattery or criticism, it is not good to affect you. Most importantly, I have the support of my family and friends. They help me keep my feet on the ground. I live in Australia, not Los Angeles, that helps a lot, and I separate my work from my personal life,” he explains.
After starring in so many action movies, aren’t you a little tired of the genre? “Yes, sometimes I end up exhausted and I would love to make smaller films.” In fact, he admits that he would love to “shoot a love film. It’s also not that I receive a hundred scripts a day with different registrations, but I’m at a point in my career where I do take a lot of care in what I choose and what I do.”
