Chris Hemsworth Set To Swim With Sharks For National Geographic

If we say shark, what do you think of? If it’s Chris Hemsworth, that’s strangely specific but also good on you as the Thor actor has agreed to swim with the underwater creatures for a National Geographic special called Shark Beach. Set to premiere during the programming block’s annual SHARKFEST event next summer, it’ll see the God of Thunder facing off against his biggest real-life foe to date.

The decision to pick Hemsworth out of all the actors in the world may not have been so far-fetched, either. Although he doesn’t sound like it whenever he dons the moniker of everyone’s favorite Norse God, he actually hails from Australia. On top of that, the actor claims he’s an enthusiastic surfer. In short, this might be a perfect match in the making.

While Nat Geo is excited to have Thor on board for their summer program, Hemsworth himself is pretty stoked as well. “I’ve spent a great deal of my life near or in the ocean,” the actor said in a statement, “sharing the same backyard with sharks, and recently there’s been some growing concern regarding an increase in shark activity.”

Cinema has given sharks kind of a bad name. Ever since the release and rising popularity of Jaws, the ocean’s top predator is known to mankind as a vicious beast which actively seeks out human prey. In reality, however, most species of sharks – especially Great Whites – are much more docile and frankly, disinterested in people.

Hemsworth knows this all too well. “It’s crucial that we both revere and respect sharks,” he went on to say in his statement. “Our oceans depend on these apex predators for a biodiverse ecosystem; however, we must also learn how to protect ourselves, and that’s my main objective in Shark Beach.”

When people swim with large sharks, they usually do so from inside the comfort of a cage. Whether Chris Hemsworth will brave the wild waters and come back alive remains to be seen, but it’s sure to make for interesting television as well as a nice side dish to go along with his upcoming film Thor: Love and Thunder.