Elsa Pataky "Interceptor"© Elsa Pataky

Elsa Pataky talks about being an ‘action mom’ & inspiring her kids

There’s room for more than one action star in the Hemsworth-Pataky household.


Senior Writer
JUNE 4, 2022 11:41 AM EDT

Elsa Pataky is back in the movies, in a big way. The actress starred in “Interceptor,” where she played JJ Collins, a tough soldier tasked with saving the world. It’s a role that demanded a lot of her physically and that reminded her household that she’s also an action star, something that’s inspiring for her kids.

In an interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Pataky talked about her experience filming “Interceptor” and the hard work she put in in order to be able to look the part and shoot her stunts. “I’ve always been a big fan of action movies, since I was little,” she said. “I grew up watching Indiana Jones and wanted to be the female version of that role.” Pataky trained for six months prior to shooting the film and says she learned around 800 moves in order to perform most of her stunts.

Pataky then shared that she plans to make more action movies. She also discussed the importance of being a woman and playing these types of roles, something that she hopes inspires her kids. “Chris has been the action man in the house, and I’ve been the mom, so for our kids to watch that, ‘Oh, wow, you can be the action mom, too.’ Just being an inspiration for them. For little boys, seeing a woman kicking ass, it’s good for them. And same for my daughter, to see you’re capable. You’re a girl and you’re capable [of doing] the same as a man,” she said.

© GettyImages

Pataky and Hemsworth at the Australian premiere of “Interceptor”

The director of the film, Matthew Reilly, had only great things to say about Pataky’s work. “Her physicality speaks for itself,” he said. “I noticed on the first day of the shoot, though, that Elsa is an extraordinary actress. … She’s just dynamite.”

When he met up with Hemsworth, one of the film’s producers, he shared his vision of Pataky and his goals with their film. “I said, ‘You know, my plan is to make Elsa the biggest action movie star in your household,‘” he said. And he chuckled. He goes, ‘Ha ha ha.’ I go, ‘No, I’m not joking.’ And so I think Elsa quite liked that. … We’ve laid down the first challenge.”