A physical transformation for a role can happen in a number of ways, and some stars are brave enough to tackle this challenge. Jared Leto gained weight and was wheelchair bound, Ashton Kutcher used a diet that hospitalized him, and Matthew McConaughey was eating around 1,000 calories a day. It's insane, but these folks are dedicated to their craft.
Of course, few actors can morph into someone else like Christian Bale can, and whether it was taking things too far for The Machinist, or getting jacked for Batman, he has proven time and time again that he can make it happen.
So, will Bale continue these wild transformations? Let's hear what he's had to say about it.
Christian Bale Is An Amazing Actor
When looking at the top actors working in Hollywood today, Christian Bale is easily among the best. Despite no formal training when he was younger, the actor dedicated his life to his craft, and at this point, few people rival what he brings to the table as a lead performer.
Empire of the Sun was one of the actor's first major successes, and while things would slow down, he eventually turned heads with American Psycho. After landing the role of Batman in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, Bale became a global superstar that millions of movie fans loved seeing perform.
Through the years, the actor has continued to tack on memorable performances and impressive credits to his filmography. He simply knows how to pick a great project, and judging by what he has in store with his next few films, people should expect the actor to continue what has been a hugely successful career in Hollywood.
While Bale is certainly known for his exceptional acting abilities, he is also known for transforming himself physically to match any role that he takes on.
He Has Undergone Wild Transformations
Christian Bale's crazy transformations have been documented quite well through the years. He has become skeletal for movies like The Machinist, has beefed up to play Batman, and has even gotten super heavy for movies like Vice. It's always fascinating to see the end result of it all, especially considering that the actor was mainly doing things his way and not seeking outside help.
"I had never before gone to a doctor or a nutritionist about gaining or losing weight. But eventually, that caught up with me. When I did The Machinist, I came up with the absolutely brilliant method of just smoking cigarettes and drinking whiskey to lose weight.”
After watching Bale drop 70 lbs., even Matt Damon was astonished at how the actor was able to pull this off.
"The first day on the set, I asked him: 'How did you do that?' I’ve lost weight and gained weight for parts, and there are lots of theories on how to do it. And he just looked at me and said: 'I didn’t eat.' That guy is cut from a different cloth," said Damon.
Bale has done this many times, but the truth is that he is not getting any younger, leading many to wonder if his days of extreme transformations are over.
Bale Wants To Slow Things Down
So, will Christian Bale continue to undergo dramatic physical transformations all in the name of acting? Based on comments that he made a few years back, it sure sounds like the actor is going to slow things down on that front.
"I keep saying I’m done with it, I really think I’m done with it, yeah," the actor said in 2019.
In fact, this wasn't the first time that the actor had said this.
In a separate 2019 interview, he had also said, "I can’t keep doing it. I really can’t. My mortality is staring me in the face.”
After putting an immense physical toll on his body, we can't really blame him for not wanting to do this anymore. Sure, it paid off when he was a younger performer, but as time has gone on, these transformations have certainly gotten harder on the actor. At this point, he can take the roles that interest him the most and simply let his performance do all the talking for him.
Only time will tell if Christian Bale will refrain from undergoing crazy transformations, but no matter what he chooses to do, people will still be watching him on screen. He has several projects on tap, notably Thor: Love and Thunder, which is set for release this year. It'll be interesting to see how he looks in each upcoming release.