Actors are required to transform themselves into a character completely different from themselves. These 18 actors put their bodies on the line and put on serious weight for roles and for some of them, it was a life-changing career move.
Charlize Theron
In 2003, South African actress Charlize Theron starred as real-life female serial killer Aileen Wuornos in the movie Monster. To transform herself for the role, Theron reportedly gained close to 30 pounds, noting that it helped her to understand the character more fully. She would later go on to gain weight for her role in 2018’s Tully.
Christian Bale
In the 2013 Oscar-nominated film American Hustle, Christian Bale gained more than 40 pounds to settle into the role of Irving Rosenfeld. He would later go on to gain weight again in 2018, this time for his role in the movie Vice.
Tom Hardy
In order to transform into the notable role of Bane in The Dark Knight Rises, Tom Hardy had to gain over 30 pounds.
Matthew McConaughey
When Matthew McConaughey starred in the movie Gold, he gained a total of 45 pounds to play the character of Kenny Wells.
Brendan Fraser
The Whale stars Fraser as a 600 lb man, but he didn’t gain that much weight for the role. He also wore a suit and prosthetics.
Robert De Niro
Back in 1980, Robert De Niro took on the famed role of Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull. Playing the character of a boxer, he had to train as a boxer, which eventually led to his 20 pounds of muscle weight gain.
Mark Wahlberg
Mark Wahlberg – an actor well-known for his fit physique – recently transformed to a heavier weight for his role in 2022’s Father Stu. Gaining a total of 30 pounds, he transformed his body at age 50 by consuming 11,000 calories per day for a series of months.
Renee Zellweger
Famous for her repeating roles in the Bridget Jones movie franchise, Zellweger has been known to gain weight for these rom-coms. In 2001, she gained about 30 pounds to play Bridget Jones in the first movie.
Jared Leto
Musician and actor Jared Leto has long maintained quite a slim physique, but in 2007, he took on a role in Chapter 27 that required him to gain quite a bit of weight. Starring as John Lennon’s stalker and eventual murderer, Leto gained 67 pounds, making himself almost unrecognizable.
Hilary Swank
One less-obvious example of an actor gaining weight for a role is Hilary Swank in Million Dollar Baby. She gained mainly muscle weight (19 pounds) by drinking egg whites and working out.
Ryan Gosling
Many know Ryan Gosling as the slim, attractive male lead in romantic comedies, but in 2009 he was gaining weight for quite a different role. When he starred in The Lovely Bones, he reportedly gained a whopping 60 pounds. Later, this choice would result in director Peter Jackson firing him.
Ewan McGregor
Actor Ewan McGregor notably gained weight for his role in the 2014 TV series Fargo. He said in one press conference that he gained the weight by loading up on carbs and eating whatever he wanted to eat.
Bradley Cooper
Another muscle weight transformation, Bradley Cooper put on the pounds to star as Chris Kyle – a real-life United States Navy SEAL sniper – in American Sniper. In total, he gained 40 pounds as he bulked up, ate tons of calories, and trained every day.
George Clooney
Although he didn’t like the process, George Clooney did in fact gain a significant amount of weight to star in the movie Syriana. He gained 30 pounds to fit into the role in the 2005 movie, which reportedly changed his personality during filming.
Michael B. Jordan
Michael B. Jordan joined the ranks of actors who have bulked up significantly for roles as professional athletes when he joined the cast of Creed in 2015. In the recent Creed movie, Michael B. Jordan ended up gaining more than 20 pounds as he bulked up and transformed himself to play Adonis Creed.
Vincent D’Onofrio
Vincent D’Onofrio reportedly gained 75 pounds for his role in Full Metal Jacket, which he struggled to maintain throughout the entirety of filming. Before the film, he weighed 200 pounds and had a relatively trim figure.
Colin Farrell
In 2015, Colin Farrell starred in the deadpan Yorgos Lanthimos movie The Lobster. In a span of just two months, the actor had to gain a total of 45 pounds to fit into his role.
Jonah Hill
Back in 2015, Jonah Hill starred in the film War Dogs, for which he had to gain 40 pounds. In the film, he transformed into his arms dealer character. Later, he would shed the weight once off-set.
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