Why Chris Hemsworth Replaced The Rock in ‘Extraction’
Chris Hemsworth plays Tyler Rake in the action-packed original series ‘Extraction’. The movie follows a former Australian SASR operative on a perilous assignment, and it is based on the graphic novel Ciudad. ‘Extraction 2’ was released in 2023 as a result of its enormous success, and a third instalment is already in development.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was originally supposed to play the lead in Ciudad, which was to be directed by Joe and Anthony Russo. Although the project started in 2012, a number of adjustments caused production to be delayed for years. The Russo Brothers’ participation in Marvel films like ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ postponed their plans for the picture, which was first titled Ciudad. Johnson was a logical choice for the protagonist because of his experience in comedy and action movies, but as the Russo Brothers became more prominent in the MCU, the film’s direction changed.
Image Courtesy: People
Ciudad changed its name to ‘Extraction’ in 2018, and Sam Hargrave was hired as a new director. Chris Hemsworth took Johnson’s spot as the leader at this moment. Johnson was not available for ‘Extraction’ even though his career was booming thanks to his parts in ‘Fast & Furious’ and other action movies. With the help of their MCU network, the Russo Brothers cast Hemsworth, whose performance as Thor had already won them over, and hired Hargrave, a veteran stunt coordinator for the Russo-directed Marvel movies.
In the end, the film was delayed because of the timing of Ciudad’s production and the Russo Brothers’ triumph in Marvel, which resulted in Hemsworth being cast as Tyler Rake rather than Johnson. Notwithstanding these modifications, ‘Extraction’ was a huge success and paved the way for its follow-ups.
–Farheen Ali