A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is something that many of the greats from Hollywood past and present have received. Now we can add Chris Hemsworth to the iconic list. He received his star yesterday, which was clearly a special moment for him. It was even more special because Hemsworth apparently thought he was getting a star years ago, but was in fact lined up for a different honor.
Chris Hemsworth told the story to Variety, revealing that it was back in 2019 as part of the record-setting release of Avengers: Endgame that he and his fellow Avengers were given the honor of putting their handprints in cement at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood. At the time, the Thor actor got the two separate honors confused and thought he was getting a Walk of Fame star. He explained…
I thought that was the Walk of Fame! So when we did it, I thought, ‘Oh cool, I’m getting a star.’ And someone told me, ‘No, that’s not what this is.’
Honestly, this seems a perfectly innocent, and entirely logical, mix-up to make. Both honors have been around for decades, the TCL Chinese Theater is over 90 years old, and the Walk of Fame has been around for over 60 years. Looking at the handprints in cement or taking the Walk of Fame both reveal a who’s who of Hollywood history. Also, both of them involve making a mark in the cement. They’re not actually that different.
Walk of Fame stars are an interesting Hollywood honor as the primary hurdle to getting one is having people raise the money to pay for it. At the same time, you have to be a big enough star to make people want to get you a star, so it does still mean something. Carrie Fisher received her star posthumously, something that has happened frequently when fans want to see their favorite stars honored in a way that did not happen during their life.
While Hemsworth may have been disappointed to not get a star five years ago. He has it now. The ceremony itself was pretty great. Robert Downey Jr. was on hand and Downey brought hilarious comments from Hemsworth’s Avengers co-stars. Furiosa director George Miller was also there.
The actor himself seemed legitimately touched by having finally received this honor. He joins recent honorees like Lenny Kravitz who got a star a couple months ago, and Macauley Culkin who received one at the end of 2023. Hemsworth at times stumbled over his words trying to talk about what it meant to him to be living his dream as an actor, clearly moved by the moment. Check out the full ceremony below.
Chris Hemsworth fans can celebrate his new Walk of Fame star by checking out Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, which opens today. Now that Hemsworth has his hands in cement and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, hopefully, he’ll be able to keep them both straight.