13 actors who risked their health for the sake of the role (14 photos)

Fame is usually associated with designer clothes, a luxurious lifestyle and privileges. However, it cannot be denied that many celebrities go to extreme measures for the sake of their craft. Actors have to gain or lose weight to embody a particular character. There were cases when, due to their transformations, they ended up in a hospital bed. The examples below prove that celebrity life isn't always sunshine and rainbows.





1. Christian Bale



For his role in the thriller The Machinist (2005), Bale became “obsessed” with losing weight, so much so that he adhered to a 200-calorie diet consisting of an apple, a can of tuna and black coffee.

The second way to achieve the goal - drinking whiskey and smoking cigarettes - was unsuccessful. “I woke up with a racing heart and generally felt terrible,” the actor shared.

As a result, in four months he lost 28 kg.

"I caught my wife checking my breathing several times while I slept. Despite all the misgivings, she liked my character."

2. Hugh Jackman



The outstanding role of Jean Valjean in the musical Les Misérables earned the Australian actor an Oscar nomination for Best Actor and a Golden Globe nomination in the same category.

To prepare for the title role, Jackman lost 13 kg and didn't even drink water during the hours-long filming. This sacrifice was necessary for the opening scene, when Jean is released from prison after 19 years of imprisonment.

“It was more physical than the X-Men movies,” Jackman told Vulture. “I spent about three hours in the gym because I needed to look as exhausted as possible.”

Looking back, the talented actor has no regrets: “I realized that the sacrifices were worth it. Headaches, dizziness and irritability are a relatively small price to pay.”

3. Christian Bale



This time, the actor had to gain 19 kg to play 1970s con man Irving Rosenfeld in the film American Hustle.

Preparing for the role of Rosenfeld was less of a sacrifice than eating an apple a day. "I ate a lot of donuts, a lot of cheeseburgers and whatever I could get my hands on. I literally ate everything I could get my hands on," Bale explained to People magazine.

However, during filming, he had to slouch a lot, which ultimately led to a herniated disc. Christian also admitted that losing those extra pounds turned out to be much more difficult than he thought.

4. Miley Cyrus



Miley was just 13 years old when she landed the role of pop star Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel show. She had to work 12-hour days, "choking on coffee" and wearing "tight sequined clothes" - all of which was torture for the teenager.

Wearing makeup, a wig and extravagant outfits for four years took a toll on her mental health.

"I was told for so long what a girl should be. I was made to look like someone I wasn't, which probably led to body dysmorphic disorder. I was made into a beauty every day, and then when filming ended, I thought, 'Who I?"

5. Matt Bomer



According to director Ryan Murphy, Bomer's weight loss (by 15 kg) for the role of a journalist dying of AIDS in the film "The Normal Heart" was so serious that the actor had difficulty moving.

Matt was so exhausted that Murphy burst into tears when he saw his figure.

The director said: "I was very worried about his health because he had gotten to that point. He was sitting in a chair while his hair was being cut and could barely turn to greet me, he was so weak."

The first thing he ate after filming ended was a cracker, which made him vomit. "His body had been deprived of food for so long that he was unable to digest it," Murphy explained.

Bomer's efforts were not in vain: he won a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award nomination.

6. Jake Gyllenhaal



To play unscrupulous journalist Lou Bloom in a thrillere "Stringer", Gyllenhaal tried to consume as few calories as possible. He ended up losing 13kg, a process that became a struggle for him.

“I knew that if I felt hungry, then I was doing something right,” Jake told Variety. “Physically it manifested itself, but mentally, I think it was an even more exciting process. It became a test for me.”

7. Pauley Perrette



For the role of Abby Sciuto on NCIS, Parrett dyed her hair black for twenty years. One day, the natural blonde had a severe allergic reaction and was rushed to the hospital.

The actress developed a rash and severe swelling. “The other half of my face became twice the size of my head,” she shared.

Paulie posted the photo on social media to warn her followers about the dangers of hair dye allergies.

After this incident, she began wearing a wig or using natural dye.

8. Mark Hamill



For some reason, Mark Hamill used permanent hair dye to dye his hair purple for his cameo role as the Trickster on DC's The Flash.

“It took me 3 dyes to get back to normal color,” the actor complained.

9. Mila Kunis



The actress had to lose up to 43 kg to play the ballerina Lily in the 2010 film Black Swan. Kunis, who is 163 cm tall, explained that she did not starve herself, but consumed only 1,200 calories a day. She started smoking again to suppress her appetite.

“I had never watched what I ate before. It was the first time in my life that I had taken advantage of a food delivery service,” Mila told Entertainment Tonight in 2014. “I’m not advocating it at all, but I smoked a lot of cigarettes and ate a limited amount of calories.” ".

10. Zac Efron



Zac Efron admitted that he didn't like the muscular body he worked so hard to build for the 2017 film Baywatch.

To transform into Matt Brody, Efron took diuretics for a long time, which caused him insomnia and depression.

In an interview with Men's Health, the 36-year-old actor spoke candidly about his transformation, calling his sculpted lifeguard physique "unattainable."

"My body looked unnatural. And to get definition, I had to take Lasix, a powerful diuretic. Now I don't need that. I prefer to have an extra 2-3 percent of body fat."

11. Jared Leto



In the film Dallas Buyers Club, Jared Leto played the role of Rayon, a transgender woman with AIDS who is friends with Matthew McConaughey's character Ron Woodroof.

The actor and Thirty Seconds to Mars frontman lost more than 13kg and admitted he "stopped eating" and was forced to change "his whole being."

"For me, it wasn't about how much weight I could lose, it was about how I represented my character. I focused on what it means to be a trans woman," Leto said. According to him, the role of Rayon changed not only his walk, but also his thoughts.

12. Jason Segel



Segel was forced to lose weight to play Emily Blunt's love interest in the rom-com Knocked Up.

The program to lose 15 kg included exercise and a modest diet.

“I didn’t like it. They sent a trainer to the set, and I had to work out twice a day, and he also watched how I ate,” said the actor.

Siegel even paid his colleagues extra money to mix up their lines, so that during breaks he could have a snack without supervision.

13. Trisha Helfer



The Canadian actress permanently bleached her hair snow-white for her role as Number Six in Battlestar Galactica. During the show's second season, the crew was forced to cut Helfer's hair because her hair looked fried.

Over time, Trisha's hair began to fall out and she began wearing a wig.

"When we started the second season, with each episode my hair became thinner and thinner, shorter and shorter. And at the end...Eventually they started falling out in clumps, and I had to put on a wig.”