Seth Rogen - The Green Hornet (2011)
The Movie Transformation: Finding fame in a string of regular-guy roles, Rogen took the leap into superhero territory for 2011’s The Green Hornet .
The part of Britt Reid (aka The Green Hornet) called for a series of stunts the actor was keen to achieve himself, so he ate healthily and embarked on a fitness routine with a personal trainer. By sticking to the “5-Factor Diet”, in nine months the comic lost a little over two stone. But he’s not too happy about it.
Seth Rogen Says: "I’ve been eating better and training - and hating myself for it. I feel like a sell out, I feel lame, I feel like a guy I would make fun of."
Tom Hardy - Bronson (2008)
The Movie Transformation: The 5ft 9” Brit packed on 42 pounds for his role as armed robber Charles Bronson.
Getting through a monstrous 2,500 push ups PER DAY throughout his regime, he enlisted the help of an ex-Marine to motivate him. Hardy further assisted his body’s beefing up by chowing down on chicken, rice, chocolate, pizza, and err... playing a lot of X-Box, apparently.
Tom Hardy Says: “For Bronson, I put on about 7 lbs a week — with no steroids. In the end I’d put on about 2 and a half stone by eating chicken and rice, which was my staple diet throughout the day. Then I’d have a pizza, Häagen-Dazs and Coca-Cola: So not good stuff, but I had to put weight on.”
Gerard Butler - 300 (2006)
The Movie Transformation: Employing world-class mountain climber Mark Twight to assist in his bulk-up to become Sparta’s King Leonidas AND his regular personal trainer, Butler underwent a gargantuan physical transformation in only four months.
For six hours a day he underwent a strict series of circuit training, fat melting exercises and heavy weight lifting. This served as part of the “300-rep Spartan Workout”, which helped create his rippling muscle mass - as well as A LOT of protein-heavy food.
Gerard Butler Says: "I wanted to look really strong. I've seen so many actors play these kinds of roles, and you see all this equipment on either a big belly or skinny little arms."
Colin Farrell - Triage (2009)
The Movie Transformation: Black coffee, diet coke and tuna. These were Colin Farrell’s go-to foods for his preparation as a war-ravaged photojournalist returning from Bosnia in Triage .
The hard-bodied Farrell sunk to his lowest-ever weight after consuming only the above three food items as his daily sustenance - losing 44 pounds total. That soon whittled down to just black coffee and cigarettes when the going got tough.
Colin Farrell Says: “It was a drag. It's boring. Just boring, especially when he [directed Danis Tanovic] was putting sandwiches in my face every day on the set.”
George Clooney - Syriana (2005)
The Movie Transformation: Topping countless “Sexiest Man Alive” lists, George Clooney took to the carbs to play tubby CIA operative, Bob Barnes. Adding an extra 35 pounds to his frame by scarfing down pasta, the athletic actor soon became melancholic over his heavier size.
During filming for a torture sequence, Clooney suffered a serious spinal injury due to his increased weight and was hospitalised for a month.
George Clooney Says: “My job was just to eat as fast as I could, as much as I could … But mostly you just ate until you wanted to throw up, and made sure you didn’t throw up. So that was my job for a month, was eating.”
Renee Zellweger - Bridget Jones Diary (2001)
The Movie Transformation: A slip of a thing, Renee Zellweger knew it unlikely that legions of Bridget fans would embrace her size four frame as their beloved Miss Jones on the big screen. No, they would’ve pelted her with Silk Cuts and crisps.
Instead, the petite actress wolfed down entire cheese pizzas, doughnuts, and pretty much whatever she fancied to gain the stone and a half required to become the perpetually-single Bridge. Giving a firm two fingers to the treadmill helped too.
Renee Zellweger Says: “It sounds like heaven. For two days it's bliss... fantasies about non-stop chocolate consumption or your fantasies about ordering the pizza and the spaghetti and the garlic bread. Then after a week your glucose levels are going crazy. You're up and down and all over the place.”
Russell Crowe - Body Of Lies (2008)
The Movie Transformation: For Ridley Scott’s Body Of Lies , Crowe stacked on an incredible 63 pounds in order to play an out-of-shape CIA boss. Owing his gain to a love of cupcakes and burgers, the actor did away with his Gladiator physique as he turned his back on the gym.
Soaring up to 257 pounds - around 18 stone - his preferred method for the gain was simple. Eat more, and forgeddabaat the exercise. A sedentary lifestyle combined with a high fat diet was the key to his success.
Russell Crowe Says: “I’ll have that cheeseburger for breakfast, thank you!”
Mila Kunis - Black Swan (2010)
The Movie Transformation: At the start of production on Black Swan , Mila Kunis arrived on set weighing a meagre 95 pounds - a shift from her typical 117-pound weight.
Whittling herself down to what she termed “skin and bones” to play a ballerina, Kunis adopted a 1200-calorie a day diet along with ballet workouts seven days a week. For five months!
Mila Kunis Says: “I would literally look at myself in the mirror and I was like, ‘Oh my God! I had no shape, no boobs, no ass. .’. All you saw was bone. I was like, ‘This looks gross’. But in photographs and on film, it looked amazing.”
Jake Gyllenhaal - Nightcrawler (2014)
The Movie Transformation: Behold those cheekbones! Gyllenhaal’s role as a freelance crime reporter in the as-yet unreleased Nightcrawler demanded the actor drop a chunk of weight. Mainly from his cheeks, by the looks of it.
In the flick, a dark tale set in the seedy underbelly of Los Angeles, he plays reporter Lou, a man desperate for a scoop. To ensure his haggard drawn appearance would translate onscreen, the actor dropped around 20 pounds and remained hungry throughout the shoot. He’s stayed tight-lipped on how he accomplished it, saying little other than it was for the love of the movie.
Jake Gyllenhaal Says: "I knew that Lou was literally and figuratively hungry, so I got into the mode where I was always a bit hungry. It's not different than getting into character for anything. It's more about believing where you are and being present where you are. Who's to say what the process is? I have a strange one … but I love what I do.”
Chris Pratt - Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
The Movie Transformation: Chris Pratt is no stranger to yo-yo dieting. As Parks And Recreation resident goofball Andy, his 6ft 2 frame easily accommodates a few extra pounds which the actor has no trouble shifting should a film role demand it.
For Zero Dark Thirty his character, a Navy SEAL, had to be in tip-top shape so the man with a fondness for food cut out beer for six months and hit the gym. He dropped a good few stone to get ripped... then piled on 60 pounds immediately after filming wrapped for his role in Delivery Man .
After which he shed it and packed on the muscle once again for his role as Star-Lord in Guardians Of The Galaxy . We see a pattern emerging...
Chris Pratt Says: “I’ve always been a little soft, I like to eat and I don't like crunches. I had about five or six months and I really busted my ass to get in good shape... I just like to gain weight and lose weight. It’s a rollercoaster. I just want to do this. I want to touch God."”
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