Furiosa star Chris Hemsworth says it was "liberating" to shed his heroic Thor persona for the Mad Max prequel

Get ready to see a new side to actor Chris Hemsworth as he takes on the role of the the antagonistic Dementus in upcoming Mad Max: Fury Road prequel Furiosa. Although we are used to seeing the star saving galaxies as the heroic Thor in Marvel movies, he is now embracing villainy with the warlord.

For Hemsworth himself that experience of tackling a role so different to the God of Thunder was a freeing one, as he tells SFX magazine in the new issue, which features Doctor Who on the cover: "It was somewhat liberating and refreshing to kind of shed the heroic Thor space and transform into something different, and not have to be restricted by the expectations of the hero, I guess."

Continuing, Hemsworth then explains how he also felt "intimidated" throughout the process of making the action movie too, but co-star Anya Taylor-Joy (who portrays the titular Furiosa) was of great help. He says: "I felt quite intimidated by the whole experience. What we were a part of was both exciting and also scary. I had a lot of questions and a real need to sort of dissect everything. Meeting Anya, I immediately saw the same enthusiasm. It was just a constant discussion. Everything Anya did helped inform everything I was wanting to do. The two characters – although as abrasive and polar opposites as they were – kind of complemented the journey. I didn’t realise that when I first read the script."

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In the movie Dementus, who is leader of the powerful Biker Horde group, kidnaps a young Furiosa taking her away from both her home and family. We then follow her as she seeks her vengeance against the warlord at any cost.

And while Dementus couldn't be a more different character to Thor, they do share something in common – both wear a cape! Which is something Hemsworth found amusing, as he told EW: "I was about to say it was nice not to wear a cape, but... I did have a cape in this film. And it's red – or it becomes red eventually, as well. The absurdity of that."

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Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga arrives in theaters on May 24. The above is just a snippet from our interview, available in the latest issue of SFX magazine, which features Doctor Who on the cover and is available from Wednesday, May 15. See what you should be looking out for on newsstands below...

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