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Beefing Up: 10 Actors Who Underwent Remarkable Physical Transformations For Their Roles

When an actor completely immerses themselves into a role, the result is usually stunning. Sometimes though, what's more impressive is the work that went in before filming even began. Changing appearance for roles has become quite common in movies today, but occasionally, an actor's physical transformation goes far beyond a bit of make-up or a haircut, like Christian Bale in, well, most of his films.

Tom Hardy For The Dark Knight Rises

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Tom Hardy has never been slim, but in the photos and video clips of the actor in character as Bane, he looks absolutely massive. Fanboys have complained that Hardy doesn’t look like someone that can bench 1,500 pounds, but the actor has certainly thrown himself into the role, putting on over 30 pounds in just 3 months.

This isn’t the first time that Hardy has bulked up for a role, either. He looked absolutely ripped in Warrior and put on quite a bit of mass for his titular role in Bronson.

Hardy attributes his muscle gain to a diet very heavy in chicken and broccoli. He also said that all he did was lift weights, eat, and be careful not to run anywhere for fear of losing weight during his preparation for The Dark Knight Rises. Though his transformation may not be as extreme as some of the other ones on this list, it’s still impressive and definitely earns our respect.