Liam Hemsworth is a stand-up guy.
Instead of trashing his ex-fiancée Miley Cyrus or sharing the dirty details of their romance, he respects her privacy. "There's not much to say; there's no bad blood there," he says in NYLON Guys' November issue. Still, he's not a fan of the paparazzi attention he received after they broke up in 2013, saying, "You never get used to it because you get followed and you get chased and it's never a fun experience. I think when people see photos of you out and about in your personal life, they assume that you've asked for it or that you want that attention, but I don't think anyone in their right mind asks for that kind of thing."
Like his older brother Chris Hemsworth, Liam is all about the work. "If you put the work in, and you show that you're willing to work hard, you'll succeed," the Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 star explains. "I feel that I often put in more work, and that is what separates me from the other people."
During his formative years in Australia—long before he moved to Hollywood—Liam and his two brothers played with rifles and handmade bows and arrows. "For some reason, my grandpa thought they would be good to give to us—we would just do stupid s--t out in the bush," he recalls. "I think everyone agrees that I was the naughtiest as a kid. My uncles used to call me 'Devil Child' or 'Triple' for triple six. They used to tell my brother Chris that they were going to get the demons out of him because he was also a little crazy. But to me, they'd just be like, 'You're too far gone. There's no exorcising you anymore.'"
Liam still has a rebellious side, though he's since learned to exercise restraint.
As Mockingjay –Part 1 director Francis Lawrence says, Jennifer Lawrence was "the biggest joker" on set, "but any time you had Liam in a scene with some combination of Jen, [Josh Hutcherson or Woody Harrelson], there were going to be a lot of laughs." Woody adds that he "got on like a house fire" with Josh and Jennifer. "It was a longer process to get to know Liam. But it was only a matter of time before we were cracking each other up in scenes. We had to not look at each other or we'd mess up the shot."
Regarding his co-stars, Liam says, "I've been friends with all these people for so many years now. I'm so lucky to have Jennifer and Josh and Woody and all these other great people. We've created really strong bonds." Plus, the actor says, "Woody's like a little kid. Me and Jen always call him a Labrador because you throw something and he'll fetch it. When he does turn it on, he's got the most intense, crazy look in his eyes. He's such a great actor, yet he can be so free and just have fun with the whole thing." Working with the all-star cast is a blast. "It's like high school because we'll mess around for half the day and then we'll do a little bit of work," Liam recalls. "Everyone's goofing around and trying to mess each other up."
The Hunger Games cast aside, Liam has sought advice from other actors, too. "When we were on set [of Paranoia], I asked Harrison Ford if he ever doubted what he was doing or why he was doing it," he says. "He kind of stopped for a second and was like, 'No. Not for a second. This is the best job in the world.'"
Liam also "became really good friends" with "the nicest guy in the world," Billy Bob Thornton, on the set of the thriller Cut Bank. "We had this one scene where he was yelling at me. I could see he was kind of having a hard time," he says, before imitating Thornton's Southern drawl. "He comes over, and he's like, 'Man, I really just have a tough time doing scenes like this with people I feel, you know, brotherly with.'"
The November issue of NYLON Guys is on sale Oct. 2.