In Beast, your new film about an MMA fighter, you play Gabriel: a dirtbag guy with a dirtbag goatee. Did you base him off any dirtbags you’ve met?

Oh, that’s all me. I’m channelling my inner dirtbag. He has some inadequacy issues. He’s like a used car salesman; he looks fair and feels foul. But there are parts of me in him – I’m wearing my own snake skin boots for the whole film. I ended up actually keeping one of his suits, which I might have worn to a couple of premieres, which is pretty funny! [Laughs]

It is so fun to play characters like him. It’s nice to be off the leash, right? It’s nice to have permission to do and say things that give people the ick.

I understand the Hemsworths really love MMA and UFC.

We do! I’ve trained for a long time – nothing professional or anything, I just dabble in boxing, Brazilian jiujitsu and muay thai. It was a big part of growing up in my household with my idiot brothers, being able to protect myself from the wild throws and kicks that they’d send my way. Every Sunday I’m usually at either my place, Chris’s place or Liam’s place, and it’s UFC Sunday. The kids will come. There’s always a lot of shouting at the TV and usually we all end up wrestling. Liam will tell you he’s never been beaten at wrestling but don’t believe a single word he says!

What are you secretly really good at?

I just landed a front flip on the trampoline the other day, in front of my 14-year-old daughter. I haven’t seen her so in awe for so long. She was like, “God, you’re really old and you’re doing flips!” I’m not old. I’m 45, mate!

You have done three films with Russell Crowe but you’ve never been in a scene with him. What’s going on?

Yeah! Bloody hell. I think I’ve missed out! I don’t think I’m going to get another shot at this!

Russell is an icon. He’s one of the greatest actors. He is a powerhouse on set. He’s a force of nature when he gets going. He can be abrasive but when you’re onside with him he’s absolutely wonderful. He is a good champion of the little man, the young man, the up-and-coming guys. When [Crowe’s 2022 film] Poker Face almost went under, he took on everything and saved 200 jobs. The film was here or there but the fact he recognised a whole lot of people were going to be out of work if he didn’t step up – that’s a rare commitment, and I take my hat off to him.

What is the best and worst thing about being in a famous family?

I think there’s an assumption that life is easy if you have the Hemsworth name, that you’re gonna get roles super easily. In my experience, it’s actually been a lot more difficult and it comes with a stigma. So I have to be very aware of my craft, making sure I’ve really prepared. That sounds like a no-brainer but I’ve had to really work, really dive deep into that part of my game, you know? But I love it. I’ve had all these beautiful character roles. But there is kind of baggage that’s left over from [Chris and Liam]. Most of it is, “Oh, you’re really short!” [Laughs]

When I walk in the room, I have to be very specific about who I am. But it still gets confusing. Every now and again someone calls me Liam. I actually got introduced at the Beast premiere as Liam Hemsworth, by Rob Carlton. I’m going to call him out! Fuck you, Rob! He came up after and said, “I’m so sorry. I had a brain fart.”

What movie scarred you for life as a kid?

The NeverEnding Story is probably one of my favourite films of all time. It’s the first VHS I remember actually receiving as mine, when I was maybe five or six years old. We watched that film until the tape stopped playing. The scene where Artax the horse gets stuck in the swamps of sadness? It’s so iconic and heartbreaking and fantastic. To this day I still remember being very upset about that.

I also remember watching The Exorcist in our house in Sassafras when I was about 12 or 14. My parents had gone out and we were home alone. When it was windy, the windows would kind of flex and go boink. So during The Exorcist, the most terrifying film that I’d ever seen up to that date, the windows are making noises.

Did you know [The Exorcist actor] Linda Blair has a dog rescue foundation in California? We found this dog online and I was like, is that the same Linda Blair? We inquired about this dog and 10 minutes later I get this phone call: “Luke, I love your family! Come out and see the dog!” So my daughter Harper and I went somewhere out in the hills past Los Angeles and Linda Blair proceeded to bring out about 75 different dogs. We took home the first dog, the one we went out there to see. Her name is Blu, and she’s a California rescue mutt.

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?

I had breakfast with Anthony Hopkins once. He invited me and I was like, I’m going to go have an awkward breakfast with Anthony Hopkins and try not to soil myself with terror. We got talking about me wanting to do certain projects and how my agents were saying that I shouldn’t do them. And his advice was, “Fuck them!” He said, “Fuck them. Do what you want. Why are you listening to that? Fuck them.” And I was like, that’s actually pretty good advice! I don’t know if it’s always worked out in my favour, but …

What book, album or film do you always return to and why?

There’s a book series called Red Rising by a guy called Pierce Brown. He’s a sci-fi writer and a Roman historian and he was like, what if the Romans expanded into space? The Red Rising series is just the most entertaining, inventive sci-fi – I urge everyone to check that one out. I’ve gone back to them a few times. I think [The Hunger Games director] Francis Lawrence has the rights to develop it into a TV series, which I’d love to put my hand up for.

What accent does a Roman in space have?

That’s a great question. Like mid-Atlantic with a little bit of British?

What is your most controversial opinion?

I don’t know! I’m trying to think what my kids would be horrified by. They’re probably horrified by me talking about “mogging” and “menty-Bs”.

Perhaps your controversial opinion is that “old people” should be allowed to use language like “mogging”.

Yeah! My controversial opinion is [quoting Dumb and Dumber]: “Senior citizens, although slow and dangerous behind the wheel, can still serve a purpose.”

If you could change the size of any animal to keep as a pet, what would it be?

I’m fascinated by insects and I have always wanted to see a grasshopper that was like 20 foot long. Did you ever see [the 2010 film] Monsters? That’s the coolest world ever – all the cockroaches are big and they’re biting off people’s heads and stuff. That’s a world I want to see.

Insects are so crazy. When I first joined Instagram my account was just macro pics of bugs. I’d like to get back into that. That’s my real secret talent: I’m really good at taking macro pictures of bugs.

• Beast is out in Australian and US cinemas now. It will stream on Stan in Australia from 27 May