Why Chris Hemsworth Replaced Dwayne Johnson In Extraction

Have you heard of “the butterfly effect?” No, not the 2004 Ashton Kutcher vehicle, but the principle associated with figures as various as meteorologist Edward Norton Lorenz and sci-fi author Ray Bradbury, all about how the slightest change in conditions can result in widespread changes over a period of time. History is full of such examples, where instead of obvious life changing events there exist small moments (or a series of moments) that change the futures of multiple people. As with most things regarding history, these cruxes can only be identified in hindsight, and sometimes they turn out to be surprisingly unlikely.

For example: who would’ve ever thought that the 2020 Netflix action film “Extraction” would have been such a turning point for the careers of the Russo brothers, Dwayne Johnson, and its star, Chris Hemsworth? For starters, “Extraction” itself was originally going to be a very different film: when first put together, it was going to be directed by Joe and Anthony Russo and star Johnson, as well as sport the title of its source material: the graphic novel “Ciudad” by the Russos and Ande Parks, with art by Fernando León González and Eric Skillman. When that initial version of the film didn’t come to pass, the real reason that the Russos turned to Hemsworth to replace Johnson is the same reason that they promoted Sam Hargrave to direct: all of them were involved with movies made for Marvel Studios.

“Extraction” began life as “Ciudad,” with the Russos retaining the title of their original graphic novel, and as the title implies, the story was originally set in Brazil, and centered around a mercenary hired to save a Brazilian drug lord’s kidnapped daughter. Originally, Johnson was to play the mercenary, and when the film was announced 2012, the actor was just coming off a huge success in the form of “Fast Five.” “Ciudad” would’ve continued Johnson’s bid for cementing himself as the premiere Hollywood action star of the era, and would’ve fit in nicely between the further “Fast Saga” sequels and starring vehicles like “Snitch,” “Hercules,” and “San Andreas.” For their part, the Russos were looking to make a name for themselves outside of comedy features and television, and clearly hoped that the action-centric “Ciudad” would be their ticket out.

As it happened, the Russos caught the eye of Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios, stepping in to make “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” just a few months after the “Ciudad” announcement. With the Russos’ exit, “Ciudad” collapsed, and Johnson moved on to other projects. As the Russos continued their relationship with Marvel, moving on to helm the Infinity Saga’s massive final chapters “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame,” the brothers must’ve seen potential in “Thor” star Chris Hemsworth to step into the mercenary role. Joe Russo did a rewrite of “Ciudad” to have it take place in Dhaka instead — before “Extraction,” this new version was titled “Dhaka” — and, instead of still intending to direct the film with his brother, decided to give Sam Hargrave, the stunt coordinator on “Infinity War” and “Endgame” (and second unit director on the latter film), a shot to direct.

Hargrave’s “Extraction” went on to be a big hit for Netflix, spawning a sequel in 2023 with a third film currently on the way. While a “Ciudad” film starring Johnson and directed by the Russos would’ve likely been a decent movie, it likely would have robbed us of the great MCU films the Russos made. It also may possibly have prevented Johnson from giving his finest performance in 2013’s “Pain & Gain.” It certainly would’ve meant that we’d have never gotten the two Hemsworth/Hargrave “Extraction” films, which are a couple of the best action movies made in the last decade. It’s not always true, but sometimes destiny works out for the best.