Cate Blanchett avoids serious chainsaw accident, finds quarantine homeschooling more stressful

ABC/Fred Lee(LONDON) — In Thor: Ragnarok, Oscar winner Cate Blanchett played a baddie so powerful that she smashed Thor’s hammer with her bare hand. 

In real life, she’s pretty tough, too: She’s admitted that while in lockdown in England, she cut herself in the head with a chainsaw, and lived to laugh about it.

Page Six reports the Aussie star of Mrs. America joked about the mishap on a podcast with Julia Gillard, the former prime minister of Australia. 

“I had a bit of a chainsaw accident yesterday which sounds very, very exciting but it wasn’t,” the 51-year-old star laughed. “Apart from the little nick to my head, we’re fine.”

The former PM advised, “Be very careful with that chainsaw. You’ve got a very famous head. I don’t think they will want to see any nicks taken out of it.”

Blanchett laughed in response, “I know, I want to keep it on my shoulders!”

Potentially head-removing injuries aside, Blanchett says what she’s really stressing about in lockdown is homeschooling her kids. 

She admits the 18-year-old son — whom she took a year off to help while his school was closed — “doesn’t want really to have anything to do with me.”  Plus, she says, instructing her five-year-old has given her “huge” respect for teachers, who Blanchett says should be paid “the same as lawyers and doctors.” 

The actress says, “I hope out of this, that teachers’ wages will be increased and their respect will be amplified by COVID-19.”

By Stephen Iervolino
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