Getting paid handsomely to claim you are someone else falsely? Plus, you get to be well-known. But it’s not that simple. Even if you become one of the one hundred aspiring actors who do well, there is a lot of hard work, especially if you desire cute critical praise.
Some artists take things one step further and give everything they have to their work. Some actors and actresses do a lot more than expected, like changing their bodies, doing full-method acting, or going through a lot of training. We’ll look at a few of the most extreme cases here.
Charlize Theron – Monster (2003)
In the early 2000s, Charlize Theron got a big break when she was cast in Monster as real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos. The only problem was that Charlize Theron didn’t look like the woman. Because of this, there would have to be a complete and amazing change.
Theron first stopped working out so she could gain 30 pounds in a short amount of time. This helped her look like the part. She then got her eyebrows shaved off and purposely hurt her hair. Theron had washed-off tattoo ink put on her before scenes to finish the look and make it look like her skin was blotchy.
Demi Moore – G.I. Jane (1997)
G.I. Jane makes up a story about the first woman to go through training for special operations. Demi Moore, who played the lead, was so excited about the role that she trained with real Navy seals to prepare for it, even though she wasn’t required to.
This entry on our list shows that hard work doesn’t always lead to great results. The movie got bad reviews at best, and Demi Moore “won” a Razzie award for the worst actress.
Leonardo DiCaprio – The Revenant (2015)
The survival epic The Revenant will be remembered as the movie where Leonardo DiCaprio finally won an Oscar, but it looks like he had to move through hell and back to get there.
For the movie, the actor had to work in cold, remote places while wearing a wet bearskin and rushing to get ready every day because there wasn’t enough light. Because of this, DiCaprio threatened himself with hypothermia more than once. Later, when he talked about the movie, DiCaprio said that the experience was the “epitome” of pain.
Anne Hathaway – Les Misérables (2012)
Most musicals don’t feel like real life, but the cast of Les Misérables ended up going to great lengths to ensure it did. Hugh Jackman, who played the main character, lost and gained some weight to show his character’s journey. Russell Crowe, who played the bad guy, did a lot of research to get his character right.
But it could be said that Anne Hathaway’s Oscar-winning performance, which put a lot of pressure on her physique and mind, was the most difficult. Hathaway not only lost a lot of weight for the performance but also hurt her mental health.
Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight (2008)
Everyone has their favorite version of the Joker, but no one can deny that Heath Ledger’s twisted take on the character was a real game-changer. But to become the character, Ledger had to go further than ever for a role.
Ledger didn’t want to watch the movie get made, so he got very involved in the Joker’s cosmetics and design. He even locked himself up in a London hotel for more than a month to work on perfecting the character’s voice, mannerisms, and personality. He also kept a Joker’s diary that he would later read to get into character.
Natalie Portman – Black Swan (2010)
Natalie Portman learned ballet was no joke when she was getting ready for her role in the supernatural drama Black Swan. Portman didn’t eat much more than carrot sticks and almonds while she worked out and practiced for eight hours a day.
It makes sense that all of this would stress Portman’s mind and body, causing her to get hurt and feel mentally drained. In later interviews, Portman would say, There were some nights when I thought I would die. But at least some of it was worth it because the actress won an Oscar for her performance.
Christian Bale – The Machinist (2004)
Christian Bale is used to making his body look different for a role. Still, in the 2004 movie The Machinist, Bale played Trevor Reznik, a man with severe insomnia and bouts of paranoia, guilt, and delusion.
Brand Anderson planned on making Reznik look thin by dressing him in baggy clothes and putting on makeup. But Bale was so dedicated to the role that he ate an apple, liquid, and coffee daily, along with the occasional shot of whiskey and a lot of cigarettes.
Bale lost a total of about 62 pounds and only weighed 120 pounds while making the movie. Bale would later say that he was in a Zen state of mind when he lost so much weight for the movie.
Jim Carrey – How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
Jim Carey may not have had a hard time getting into character when he played the grumpy and unfriendly Grinch in 2000 because the procedure of becoming the Grinch was very much like being tortured.
When the first time it took more than eight hours for prosthetics and makeup to turn Jim Carrey into the Grinch, producer Brian Grazer hired a CIA agent to teach the actor how to deal with torture.
Mia Farrow – Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
In this classic horror movie, Mia Farrow plays the shy, pregnant Rosemary Woodhouse, who is slowly drawn into a plot by the devil to hurt her. But just as the character in the movie goes through a hard time, so does Farrow, both on and off the set, as she makes the movie.
First, filming was a pain because director Roman Polanski paid so much attention to detail that the budget and schedule went over. But Mia’s then-husband Frank Sinatra may have caused the most trouble when he sent his lawyer to the set to give the actress divorce papers.
Daniel Day-Lewis – My Left Foot (1989)
People have different ideas about the idea of method acting. But whether you think it’s pretentious crap or amazing skill, there’s no doubt that Daniel Day-Lewis is a master of it. But in the 1989 movie My Left Foot, the actor went further than he had ever gone before or since.
Day-Lewis played Christy Brown in the movie. Christy Brown had cerebral palsy and could only move his left foot. The actor did everything he could to get into character.
Not only did he insist that everyone call him Christy Brown, but he also refused to get out of his wheelchair, so crew members had to carry him over a lot of equipment in scenes. Some people also said that his assistants had to feed him with a spoon during lunch breaks.