In the world of special effects and Photoshop, it’s easy to believe that the things we see in the movies aren’t real, especially when actors appear to have lost weight or gone through major physical changes. Most of the time, “movie magic” is responsible for these transformations, but every once in a while, preparing for a role means pushing the limits of normal dietary habits. Here are five actors who did that very thing.
1. Leonardo DiCaprio
While filming The Revenant, DiCaprio let nothing stand in the way of his first Oscar. At one point in the movie, his character is forced to eat a bison liver, but unlike most people, who would just eat a tofu or synthetic look-a-like, DiCaprio ate an actual bison liver. The reason behind it? He wanted to gain the most instinctive reaction for the camera and for his fans.
2. Beyoncé
To prepare for her role as Deena Jones in Dreamgirls, Mrs. Knowles lived off the now infamous concoction of lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and maple syrup. For 14 days, Beyoncé lived off the Master Cleanse Diet and lost 20 pounds. Although, she gained the weight back quickly, losing 14 pounds in 20 days was no healthy feat, especially for a movie role.
3. Jared Leto
While eating nothing but ice cream seems like the world’s best diet, Jared Leto found a way to make it disgusting. To prepare for Chapter 27, Leto drank melted pints of chocolate Häagen Dazs with olive oil and soy sauce. Why? To make sure he put on even more weight for his role.
4. Robert Pattinson
Twilight Star, Robert Pattinson, has probably one of the weirdest diets of the bunch. While filming The Rover, Pattison ate white bread and barbecue sauce every day for six weeks.
5. 50 Cent
For his role in Things Fall Apart, rapper 50 Cent dropped 54 pounds to accurately play a football player who succumbs to cancer. To lose the weight, 50 kept to an all-liquid diet. He even incorporated running into his daily routine to suppress his appetite.