Chris Hemsworth discovered he’s at increased risk for Alzheimer’s while filming the National Geographic series Limitless.
While having bloodwork done for the show's fifth episode, the Marvel star discovered he had two copies of the APOE4 gene – something that can increase your odds of developing Alzheimer’s disease eight- to twelvefold, according to the Mayo Clinic.
He told Vanity Fair, “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. 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.”
He explained that he kept it in the show as “a motivator to take better care of themselves and to understand that there are steps you can take.”
Although the revalation will appear in the series, the Furiosa star hasn't talked to his kids about it yet.
He explained, “I don’t think they could have grasped the concept or have the understanding, so no. It’s not like I’ve been handed my resignation and this is what it is — and it’s up in a few months. It’s not quite that situation, thankfully. One day I’m sure I’ll bring it up. They probably want to test themselves and find out, ‘Are you in the category that’s going to be sensitive to this or not?'”