Hollywood stars who made drastic transformation for a role

Acting isn’t just about memorising lines from a script, sometimes it's about changing yourself completely.

When it comes to acting, some Hollywood icons have shown how dedicated they are to their roles, taking their commitment to the next level.

Over the years, Hollywood has seen many actors push themselves to incredible lengths, from drastic weight loss and weight gain to shockingly unrecognizable makeovers.

These major transformations not only leave the audiences impressed but also showcases how far these actors are willing to go for their craft.

Let’s take a look at stars who made unbelievable changes to themself for their roles:

Anne Hathaway

For her role as Fantine in 2012’s Les Misérables, Anne not only went as far as dropping 20 pounds but shaved her head as well.

Her incredible performance earned her Best Supporting Actress Oscar, though later on the 42-year-old star revealed she had shed the weight in an "unhealthy way."

During an interview with Jess Cagle, in 2019, she shared, "I didn’t know anything about nutrition. I taxed my body, and my brain bore the brunt of it for a while. I just felt very anxious and very lost at that time."

Demi Moore

To embody her character in 1997’s G.I. Jane, Demi put on weight to build the muscle to help her look the part of a military officer.

She also went all in by shaving her head for the role.

The 62-year-old actress reflected on this in her 2019 memoir, Inside Out, revealing, "My usual reaction would have been to start starving myself again, to begin an exercise regime designed to reduce the bulk, but I did neither."

"I had reached my limit."

Matthew McConaughey

Matthew McConaughey broke away from the roles he was usually known for, starring as the charming rom-com lead, and stunned audiences with his dramatic transformation in Dallas Buyers Club, which also earned him an Oscar.

The 55-year-old actor stepped into the role of Ron Woodroof, an AIDS patient who challenged US authorities to provide unapproved medications to others battling the illness.

According to the BBC, he had shed close to 50 pounds for the role, but he didn’t opt for an unhealthy way to do so.

Matthew shared, "I met with a nutritionist. I gave myself four months to lose the weight. I had my programmed meals."

Continuing, "lost 3.5lb a week, like clockwork, and got down to my desired weight, which turned out to be 47lb lighter."

John Travolta

Having become a heartthrob after starring in Grease in 1978, John Travolta made a bold return to the musical genre nearly three decades later, appearing in Hairspray 2007. However, this time things were a little different.

For his role in Hairspray, he underwent an unforgettable and remarkable makeover to play the role of Edna Turnblad, the big hearted, bubbly mother of Tracy.

According to the reports of the time, the entire process of wearing the 30 pound body suit, along with complete hair and make up, took about four hours.

Sofia Vergara

Known for her charm and wit, the Modern Family star Sofia Vergara shocked her fans with a drastic transformation to portray Griselda Blanco in 2024’s Griselda.

Her makeover involved extensive prosthetics from a fake nose to false teeth, along with five wigs, each tailored to reflect the character’s changing eras.

David Harbour

David lost an impressive 75 pounds ahead of Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things season four, to authentically portray his character Hopper’s harsh imprisonment in a Russian gulag.

By 2022, the 50-year-old actor packed on more weight again for his role in Violent Night.

During his conversation with British GQ, he expressed he is no longer willing to go through these transformations again, referring to the weight he had gained for the role as Santa Claus.

"I don’t think I’ll ever do that again. The prosthetics are too good," he stated.

Kumail Nanjiani

Kumail Nanjiani is also one of the actors who underwent a drastic transformation for a role that left his fans stunned.

He completely changed his physical appearance to play superhero Kingo in 2021’s Eternals.

The 47-year-old Pakistani-American stand-up comedian and actor went on to admit that the attention his transformed body received intensified his "unhealthy" relationship with food.

Speaking to NPR in 2022 about the pictures of his new abs he posted on social media, Kumail shared, "I don’t regret releasing those pictures because they did change my life."

"However, I do wish it didn’t occupy as much of my head space as it does."