In his new documentary, Chris Hemsworth: A Road Trip to Remember, Chris and his dad take a special trip through time together.

Chris Hemsworth has broken down over his dad's recent early-age Alzheimer's diagnosis. Photo: Disney+

Chris Hemsworth has broken down over his dad’s recent early-age Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Photo: Disney+

Chris Hemsworth has reflected on how his father’s early-stage Alzheimer’s diagnosis has made him think about his own children. He posted an emotional clip his new documentary, Chris Hemsworth: A Road Trip to Remember, where he struggled to hold back tears while discussing Craig’s health condition.

The documentary sees Chris and his dad embark on a “road trip back in time” in the hope that visiting key places from their past will help jog Craig’s memories. The neurological condition facing Craig really hit home for the Thor star when he came across an old photo of them together.

“This is a photo of a boy and his father in the outback,” the 42-year-old said.

“And the dad’s looking at his son with a lot of love, that tells me that that little boy is the only thing that exists in that moment.

“And that boy is me.”

While it started out as a nice trip down memory lane for the actor, he was suddenly hit with a huge realisation.

He was confronted with the idea that he is close to the same age now that his dad was when that photo was taken all those years ago.

“This is a photo of me and my dad, and now he’s had a diagnosis,” he said, with tears coming to his eyes.

“It makes me think of my own… my own kids.”

In the documentary, he said it’s “easy” to take parents for granted, and he worried what impact his Hollywood schedule has on his own kids, India Rose, Sasha, and Tristan, who are aged between 11 and 13.

“I feel I’ve been so busy I haven’t spent as much time with my dad as I would want to… and there was the diagnosis,” he said.

“He has early-stage Alzheimer’s and there’s definitely good days and bad days.”

Chris Hemsworth fans praise him for being ‘real’ with his emotions

Chris’ fans were quick to comment on the video and praise the actor for showing his emotions.

“It takes real strength to be this open,” one person wrote. “Thank you for sharing something so real and so human.”

“I love how he isn’t afraid of showing vulnerability or cry, this is the kind of manly role models we need,” another agreed.

One fan praised Chris for creating the documentary, saying that it was “heartwarming and very special”.

“My mum has dementia. I can relate to it, it was very interesting and informative. Reminiscence therapy, in my belief, is undervalued,” they added.

Chris with his parents, Craig and Leonie Hemsworth. Photo: Getty

Chris with his parents, Craig and Leonie Hemsworth. Photo: Getty

“As we have inadvertently done this and every time my mum comes back to us!”

Another viewer added that this clip was the moment they also got “choked up” at in the documentary.

Many others pointed out the striking resemblance between Chris and his father in the photo.

National Geographic, who helped produce the documentary, said it’s an “emotional journey” for Chris and Craig as they travel across Australia

“[It] becomes a chance for Chris and Craig to deepen their bond, relive memories, and discover how love, community and nostalgia can be potent medicine,” the company added.

Chris Hemsworth’s Alzheimer’s revelation in 2022

Three years ago, Chris was filming a health and wellness series called Limitless, where he wanted to see how far he could push his body.

He did a bunch of tests and one of them revealed he has a genetic predisposition for Alzheimer’s.

In addition to his dad having the disease, his maternal grandfather also had it.

Chris has inherited two copies of the APOE4 gene, one from his mother and one from his father.

This makes him up to 10 times more likelier to eventually develop Alzheimer’s disease than the general population.

“The idea that I won’t be able to remember the life I experienced, or my wife, my kids, is probably my biggest fear,” he said after being told of his genetics.

The revelation caused him to take some time off work. But his doctor assured him that the gene discovery didn’t mean he would definitely get Alzheimer’s.

“It’s my belief that if we take every step possible, we can reduce your risk to that of anyone else,” they said to him.

Chris told Vanity Fair at the time that it was tough navigating his dad’s diagnosis and receiving his own health news.

“Most of us, we like to avoid speaking about death in the hope that we’ll somehow avoid it. We all have this belief that we’ll figure it out,” he said.

“Then to all of a sudden be told some big indicators are actually pointing to this as the route which is going to happen, the reality of it sinks in. Your own mortality.”