Warning: mild spoilers for Paul Feig's Ghostbusters below
By now you've probably heard a few things about Paul Feig's modern update of the Ghostbusters franchise. The film itself has received mixed reviews -- though it's not nearly as bad as the haters would lead you to believe -- but one of the most widely praised comedic aspects of the film is also one of the most unexpected: Chris Hemsworth. As the Ghostbusters' dumb as nails receptionist Kevin, Hemsworth delivers a career-defining performance, replete with all sorts of self-aware idiocy. As it turns out, some of Kevin's best moments actually came straight from Hemsworth himself.
During a recent interview with MTV News, Ghostbusters screenwriter Katie Dippold admitted that the scene in which Kevin interviews for a job as the Ghostbusters' receptionist primarily relied on Chris Hemsworth's ability to ad-lib. She said:
That whole interview scene was about an hour long when we shot it. Paul [Feig] just shot everything. So much stuff just spiraled. They started talking about whether he could bring his cat to work, and then Chris just started improvising. He's not only amazing at everything, but he's also a really hilarious improviser, which is crazy.
Although he's known as a heartthrob and superhero, it looks like Chris Hemsworth also has some great comedic instincts. Paul Feig would simply let the camera roll during his scenes with his co-stars, and Chris Hemsworth would go to work by ad-libbing hilarious lines. He took a conversation about something as trivial as bringing his cat into work and managed to craft a scene that had the entire cast and crew bursting with laughter.
This style of filmmaking should not come as a surprise to those of us who religiously follow Paul Feig's comedies. Many of the best scenes in his movies revolve around simply letting the camera run while actors do their best to come up with the funniest possible lines. From Annie (Kristen Wiig) arguing with a teenage girl in Bridesmaids, to a monologue by Jason Statham's Rick Ford in last year's Spy, Feig has an insane amount of patience and simply lets his actors bounce off of one another -- cutting the best material into the final film in post-production.
Check out a perfect example this style of comedic filmmaking below in an uncut scene from Bridesmaids:
Paul Feig's Ghostbusters may be a polarizing movie, but that doesn't mean it's not full of comedy gold. Chris Hemsworth has proven his ability to go toe-to-toe with some of the funniest actors working today, and we think he should seriously consider carving out a new niche for himself in this genre. Ghostbusters is currently in theaters, so make sure to check it out for yourself.
