Did Chris Hemsworth Really Fly A Plane In Spiderhead?
These days, it’s easy to assume that Chris Hemsworth can do it all. He can headline his very own franchise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). He can successfully star in and produce films for Netflix.And he can accomplish all of these while also creating new jobs in his native Australia and being a devoted husband (to wife Elsa Pataky) and father to three adorable children.And as it turns out, Hemsworth is also not done adding to his remarkable skillset yet. In his latest Netflix film, Spiderhead, the actor is seen flying a plane towards the end of the film. This certainly got fans wondering if Hemsworth has taken up piloting recently too.
Chris Hemsworth ‘Called Back Right Away’ After He Was Sent The Spiderhead Script
Director Joseph Kosinski tackled Spiderhead soon after working with Tom Cruise on Top Gun: Maverick. “I like the rhythm of big to small, and small being a relative term I understand,” he explained.
Based on a short story that was published in The New Yorker, Spiderhead tells the story of a fictional remote facility where convicts volunteer to become medical subjects in exchange for a shorter sentence. The facility is run by a man named Steve Abnesti who administers drugs that may elicit strong emotional and sexual responses.
And when it came to casting the lead role, he couldn’t think of anyone better to play Abnesti than Hemsworth.
“I knew Chris had great comic timing, which is an important part of the role. He obviously has charisma in spades, which is another important aspect of Abnesti, because he really is a salesman,” Kosinski explained. “He is constantly manipulating and selling these inmates on acknowledging to the experiment.”
The director was also glad that Hemsworth reached out to him almost immediately after he got the film’s script.
“What I didn't know was if Chris was interested in exploring the moral ambiguity and darker side of this character. Because you don't think of Chris when you think of a villain, you know?” Kosinski explained.
“So when we sent him the script, I was thrilled when he called back right away and said, ‘This guy's fascinating. There's so many layers here to play.’”
In Spiderhead, Chris Hemsworth’s Steve Abnesti Attempts A Daring Escape In The End
In the movie, it doesn’t take long before viewers meet Abnesti’s favorite test subject, Jeff (Miles Teller, a frequent Kosinki collaborator). Perhaps, more than most, he experiences the most intense highs and lows due to various drug trials as Abnesti administers several substances into his system.
Later on, however, it is also Jeff who discovers that Abnesti had also been testing mind control drugs on him and other subjects. The two men get into a scuffle soon after and Jeff later reports Spiderhead to the authorities before escaping the facility with fellow medical subject Lizzy (Jurnee Smollett).
As for Abnesti, he also flees Spiderhead upon seeing the authorities on approach. At this point, however, he’s got a significant dose of the drug Laffodil (essentially, a laughing gas) in his system. In this drugged state, Abnesti makes his way to a small plane and pilots it out of there.
The flight is brief, however, as he slams the plane into the mountains, presumably killing himself.
Did Chris Hemsworth Really Fly A Plane In Spiderhead?
Hemsworth’s flying scene is shot up close with the actor shown flying the small plane solo. And as it turns out, it really was the Australian star who piloted the plane. Hemsworth may have had a co-pilot with him but for the film’s sequence, he ended up flying the plane on his own.
“Yeah, he was flying the plane and I was laying in the back on the floor behind him, which is more than I got to do on Top Gun!” Kosinski confirmed (ironic given that that film paid a pretty penny for Tom Cruise to pretend to fly).
“There's only two seats in the de Havilland Beaver, which is that floatplane in Spiderhead. Chris was in the front flying, and I was laying down in the back with a small clamshell monitor and a headset talking to him.”
He later added, “My life in his hands in a 60-year-old airplane over the Coral Sea. I'll never forget that, for sure.”
And in case anyone was wondering if Hemsworth attended flight school before shooting the scene, the answer is not exactly.
“He'd only had one flying lesson before we did that scene,” Kosinski revealed of the star. As for Hemsworth himself, he was well aware of the stakes when they shot the scene and he’s just glad that he managed to safely pull it off.
“I don't have a license, so I don't know how much I should admit to that, but…,” the actor said. “We went out and landed on the water as well and took off, and it was pretty incredible. I can't say I'm the Tom Cruise-level of pilot. But I gave it a go, and it was really fun.”
Meanwhile, following Spiderhead (and Thor: Love and Thunder), Hemsworth has several other films lined up. It doesn’t seem like he’ll be taking to the skies again anytime soon though.
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