They Went To The Extreme
Since its inception in the Golden Age of Hollywood, method acting has become one of the most captivating and controversial aspects of filmmaking. In their drive to truly understand their characters, some actors take on aspects of a role even when the cameras aren't rolling—but these actors took things a little too far, risking everything for the perfect performance.
Gary Oldman—Darkest Hour
Gary Oldman is known for his incredible transformations but molding himself into Winston Churchill made the actor seriously ill. It was bad enough that he had to wear 14 pounds of prosthetics, but it was Churchill’s love of Cuban cigars that was the real problem.
Universal, Darkest Hour (2017)
Gary Oldman—Darkest Hour
Churchill’s Romeo y Julieta Cubans are as iconic as the man himself, so to make his performance truly convincing, Oldman sparked up a new cigar for each new take of single scene. That added up to 400 Cubans, and a bad case of nicotine poisoning for Oldman.
Universal, Darkest Hour (2017)
Sylvester Stallone—Rocky IV
Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren held nothing back when it came to portraying the iconic fight between Rocky and Drago in Rocky IV. Lundgren hit Stallone with real punches, and while it made for an excellent scene, it also landed Stallone in the hospital.
Sylvester Stallone—Rocky IV
The blows from Lundgren were so bad that Stallone nearly lost his life, and had to be flown from Canada to California for intensive treatment. As Stallone recalls: "Later that night, my heart started to swell, my blood pressure went up to 260, and I was going to be talking to angels”.
Daniel Day-Lewis—Gangs Of New York
Daniel Day-Lewis’ method acting has inspired many other Hollywood stars. One of his greatest roles was William "Bill the Butcher" Cutting. To start getting into character, Day-Lewis refused to wear anything other than clothing from the 1860s, when the film takes place. He caught pneumonia from doing that and then took his immersion to a whole other level.
Miramax, Gangs of New York (2002)
Daniel Day-Lewis—Gangs Of New York
Lewis continued his transformation by wearing glass contact lenses and learning to tap his closed eye with a knife in preparation for a particular scene in the movie. Then, to really cement his persona as Bill the Butcher, he went out and started fights with strangers while still in character.
Miramax, Gangs of New York (2002)
Tom Hanks—Cast Away
To really become stranded FedEx analyst Chuck Noland, Tom Hanks lost 50 pounds. This was clear to audiences, but few people know that he took his method acting a step further—much to the detriment of his health.
Twentieth Century, Cast Away (2000)
Tom Hanks—Cast Away
Hanks refused to bathe or cut his hair during his time as Chuck Noland. This went on long enough to leave him with a serious staph infection, but his dedication to the role left audiences with an iconic performance.
Twentieth Century, Cast Away (2000)
Leonardo DiCaprio—The Revenant
The Revenant sees Leonardo DiCaprio embody fur trapper Hugh Glass as he struggles to survive a trip gone wrong in the Dakotas. The role earned DiCaprio his first Academy Award for Best Actor, but it also took a grueling toll on the actor.
Twentieth Century, The Revenant (2015)
Leonardo DiCaprio—The Revenant
To prepare for the role, DiCaprio camped out in the wilderness and went through full training to become an outdoorsman. Then during filming, his beliefs—and fortitude—were put to the test. The scene where he sleeps in an animal carcass was real, as was the scene of him eating raw bison liver. That’s gross enough but was made more difficult by the fact the DiCaprio is a vegan.
Twentieth Century, The Revenant (2015)
Dustin Hoffman—Kramer Vs. Kramer
Dustin Hoffman’s portrayal of a divorcee is still one of his greatest performances, but the lengths he took to get into character left even co-star Meryl Streep shocked. First, Hoffman made an unscripted move by smashing a wine glass against the wall in a dinner scene. But it was what Hoffman did when the camera wasn’t rolling that really got Streep angry.
Columbia, Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Dustin Hoffman—Kramer Vs. Kramer
In an interview with The New York Times, Streep admitted that Hoffman had slapped her during a break in filming. His reason? To “help” make her acting better. Yeah, we're pretty sure Meryl Streep needs no help in that department.
Columbia, Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Christian Bale—The Machinist
Christian Bale’s portrayal of tormented machinist Trevor Reznik is one of the most infamous cases of extreme method acting. To really dive into his character’s extreme guilt over an accident at work, Bale lost 62 pounds. At the time, it was the most weight anyone had ever lost for a movie role.
Paramount, The Machinist (2004)
Christian Bale—The Machinist
To achieve his emaciated look, Bale ate only apples, water, and coffee. He topped off that bland diet with smokes and whiskey. Of course, that all took a toll on Bale’s health, but he went on to shock the world again when—just a year later—he appeared as the super-fit Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins.
Paramount, The Machinist (2004)
Adrien Brody—The Pianist
Adrien Brody took extreme measures to become Władysław Szpilman, a Polish-Jewish pianist whose life is derailed by the Nazi invasion of Warsaw. Brody said he wanted to really feel a similar “hollowness and emptiness” as his character—and he started by starving himself.
Adrien Brody—The Pianist
To complete that overwhelming feeling of loss, Brody sold his car, and left his apartment to move to Europe. Luckily, his extreme method acting didn’t just lead to a stellar performance; it also got him an Academy Award for Best Actor.
Jim Carrey—Man On The Moon
Andy Kaufman was a legendary comedian, so of course, Jim Carrey would go above and beyond to embody Kaufman. Carrey stayed in character throughout the whole production—and even claimed that he was possessed by Kaufman’s ghost.
Universal, Man on the Moon (1999)
Jim Carrey—Man On The Moon
While some people think Carrey’s commitment to the role was a stroke of genius, others think he created an exaggerated version of Kaufman. What’s certain, though, is that Carrey left everyone else on set stressed by his antics. He was even mean to wrestler Jerry Lawler, who had actually been friends with Andy Kaufman.
Universal, Man on the Moon (1999)
Shia LaBeouf—Fury
Shia LaBeouf shed blood, sweat, and tears to crank out one his greatest performances in Fury—and we mean that literally. Instead of visiting hair and makeup to make cuts on his cheek, LaBeouf sliced his own cheek. He even opened the cuts up between takes for continuity.
Shia LaBeouf—Fury
To complete his transformation, LaBeouf neglected his hygiene throughout filming. Then he really took things to the extreme by having a tooth pulled out.
Nicolas Cage—Birdy
Nicolas Cage also endured a painful transformation for his role as Vietnam War soldier Al Columbato. He started by pulling out a few of his teeth, and to really immerse himself, he didn’t use any anesthetic during his DIY operation.
Nicolas Cage—Birdy
Then, to portray his character’s injury from a bomb, Cage refused to take off the bandages—for five weeks. When he finally took them off, he was left with acne and painful ingrown hairs. Luckily, his pain paid off and won him the coveted Grand Prix Spécial du Jury at the Cannes Film Festival.
Jared Leto—Suicide Squad
Jared Leto’s portrayal of the Joker stirred up a lot of controversy—and the same can be said of his method acting antics behind the scenes. Leto freely admitted that he went to the extreme, and even took to mailing grotesque things to his co-stars.
Warner Bros., Suicide Squad (2016)
Jared Leto—Suicide Squad
Some of the disgusting items Leto sent included animals (both dead and alive), used contraceptives, and adult toys. Leto later backpedaled and denied sending anything too explicit. He went on to say that his parcels were “received with laughter, fun, and adventure…” Yeah, we’re not buying that one.
Warner Bros., Suicide Squad (2016)
Daniel Day-Lewis—The Crucible
Is it really a surprise that Daniel Day-Lewis is making another appearance on this list? When it came time to dive into his role as John Proctor in The Crucible, the actor figured the best way to that was to live in the on-set 17th-century town. Having no water or electricity must have been hard, but of course it wasn’t enough for Day-Lewis.
Twentieth Century, The Crucible (1996)
Daniel Day-Lewis—The Crucible
To really get a feel for life in the 17th century, Day-Lewis built his own house, using only rustic tools from that era. To complete the immersion, he gave up his motorcycle and rode around on a horse instead.
Twentieth Century, The Crucible (1996)
Jamie Foxx—Ray
To pull off his stellar performance of the legendary Ray Charles, Jamie Foxx wanted to really feel what it would be like to live as a blind man. When it came to gaining that experience, the actor did more than method acting—he traumatized himself.
Jamie Foxx—Ray
Foxx went to the extreme and literally glued his eyes closed. That was bad enough, but it also led to severe panic attacks. Luckily, Foxx didn’t keep his eyes glued throughout the entire production run and wore prosthetic eyelids. These, however, were only slightly less panic-inducing than the glue.
Matthew McConaughey—Dallas Buyers Club
Matthew McConaughey dove deep to portray Ron Woodruff, a rodeo cowboy who was struggling with HIV. McConaughey knew he’d have to lose weight, and even called Tom Hanks to get some advice on how to do so. But shedding 50 pounds was only the first drastic step he took.
Focus Features, Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
Matthew McConaughey—Dallas Buyers Club
To pull off a sickly, pale appearance, McConaughey refused to go outside. He was indoors so long that he started to lose his eyesight. Needless to say, he pulled off the performance, but we still can’t help but wonder if going to such lengths is ever really worth it.
