Immersing yourself in the role of a Hollywood movie takes time and dedication. Although there are plenty of make-up professionals hired precisely to transform the actors into their characters, sometimes it is the actor himself who carries out a profound metamorphosis on himself.
There are several techniques that help the professional to get into the character as much as possible, so that it is totally plausible. From the most famous Stanislavskij method, to the “Brechtian” acting , the Strasberg “method”, and the “ Meisner technique ”. Everything is in the management of one’s feelings and memories according to the likelihood of the part being played.
Some professionals empathize to the point that they feel the same sensations as the character assigned to them. Furthermore, if a physical similarity can be obtained, the result becomes absolutely perfect! Moving from one film to another, however, the actors are required to deeply modify their bodies.
Here are 12 actors who have made the most extreme changes for their roles!
12) Eric Bana
In 2000 he gains international success with the character of the criminal in Chopper for which he gains about 15 kilos . A few years later, Brad Pitt suggests his name to director Wolfgang Petersen to play the Trojan hero and prince Hector in Troy : he was forced to hours and hours of strenuous training and severe training for the fighting scenes and to enter the suitable physical condition .
11) Jared Leto
Jared Leto is the prime example of the actor-chameleon . In 2000, he plays the part of a drug addict in Requiem for a dream ; seven years later, he landed the role of Mark David Chapman, John Lennon ‘s killer, in Chapter 27 , for which he had to put on about 30 pounds . Last year, the portrayal of an HIV-infected trans in Dallas’ Buyers Club earned Leto the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor : skeletal, emaciated , the actor remained in Rayon’s shoes throughout the shoot. .
10) Renee Zellweger
The only woman in our Gallery. Incredible the ability of this formidable actress to gain and lose weight with extreme speed : to take on the abundant role of Bridget in Bridget Jones’s Diary , the actress went crazy with sweets and carbohydrates of all kinds, while for those, much tighter than Roxie in Chicago , she forced herself to a very strict diet .
9) Chris Pratt
Chris Pratt is different in every movie he stars in: skinny in Moneyball , chunky for Ten Years , chunky in Zero Dark Thirty , chubby again to play Starbuck ‘s obesity lawyer , and super muscular again for the role of Peter. Quill, protagonist in Guan dians of the Galaxy . A true metabolism wizard!
8) Christian Bale
Bale restless the audience of The Sleepless Man presenting a skeletal body (I can weigh 54 kilos!). Soon after, he had to get back in shape for the filming of Batman Begins and in 2013 I fattened fifteen pounds for American Hustle .
7) Matt Damon
To play a soldier in The Courage of the Truth , young Matt Damon had to lose 15 pounds in just a few weeks. Later, he was forced to gain weight for the role in Informant , and to put on mass (more precisely defined muscles!) For Elysium .
6) Robert DeNiro
A myth of cinema who has examined the two opposites of his physicality and the great Robert De Niro. In 1976, he lost ten pounds for the role in Taxi Driver, while 4 years later, he gained 20 pounds to play boxer Jake Lamotta in Raging Bull .
5) Russel Crowe
After putting on 15 pounds to play the character of Jeffery Wigand in The Insider , Crowe had to quickly lose weight and train his muscles for the hugely popular role as Massimo Decimo Meridio in Gladiator . Eight years later, he put on 23 pounds for No Truth .
4) Vincent Kassel
The comparison between the characters played by Cassel is noteworthy: on the left, the actor in the role of French gangster Jacques Mesrine in Enemy public n.1 , for which I gain 8 kilos . On the right, in the sumptuous robes of the Beast, again in splendid shape .
3) Hugh Jackman
One of the most incredible metamorphoses concerns the actor Hugh Jackman: he lost weight to shoot Les Miserables and then regain 10 kilos of muscle mass to become a realistic and very powerful Wolverine.
2) Vincent D’Onofrio
In All That Night , D’Onofrio I play the mechanic Dawson: immediately after filming ends, I begin to gain weight (35 kilos!) To become the very famous ” Soldier Ball of Lard ” of Full Metal Jacket .
1) Tom Hanks
Three films compared, from left: Philadelphia , Winning Girls and Cast Away . Three totally different characters for which, especially to play the castaway Chuck Noland, I change his body weight drastically .
