Contrary to what dreamers like us believe, actors need to do more than memorizing lines from the script. Some go to extreme levels to get into their characters. They are ready to take any risk or any wild step to deliver the best performance. We can’t help but believe that some of these experiments were truly dangerous. They were capable of taking a mental and physical toll on the stars. Understanding an artist’s passion is definitely not our cup of tea. They can turn into the most random thing to draw inspiration. Find out the 10 insane ways actors prepared for a role.
Rami Malek
“Bohemian Rhapsody” won everyone’s heart with the sweet and soulful tribute to the legendary singer. But it was Rami Malek who gave a breathtaking performance and took us by storm. Needless to say, he pushed himself till the end to mirror Freddie Mercury and ultimately win an Academy Award for it. It turns out that the actor watched a Queen concert about 1500 times to produce the exact gestures and movements.
Adrien Brody
Adrien Brody is another A-list actor known for going out of his ways to allow his characters to possess him. He sold his house, broke up with his girlfriend, left the city, and took little cash with him before filming “The Pianist”, which was set during World War II. Later, for his role in “The Jacket”, Adrien went for a sensory deprivation chamber and spent 2 hours inside it.
Shia Labeouf
Shia LaBeouf is infamous for adopting outrageous techniques during a performance. While filming for “Fury” the actor literally pulled out a tooth and left a cut on his face on the set. He was aiming to achieve the authentic looks of a soldier at war but ended up freaking out the crew.
Nicolas Cage
Nicholas Cage has adopted harsh methods in the past to turn an onscreen moment raw and authentic. Just like Shia, this actor also wanted to step into the shoes of a soldier. While starring in “Birdy”, Cage pulled out and broke some of his teeth without anaesthesia. He wanted to look closer to his character from the Vietnam War and feel their torment.
Ryan Gosling
When the “La La Land” actor had to share a screen with Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”, he decided to even share an apartment with her. Hear us out before you arch your eyebrows. They did so for their onscreen characters who were married to each other in the story. The director wanted them to live together for a month to reflect the attachments on the screen. They were playing a couple whose marriage was hitting rock-bottom.
Andy Serkis
One can tell when an actor is simply portraying a role and when he/she is living the character. Andy Serkis decided to get in his character’s shoes, who was a polio survivor. In order to play Ian Dury in “Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll”, Andy wore a leg brace for a year.
James Franco
“James Dean” was a critically-acclaimed biopic that was sadly missed by many people. Actor James Franco outdid himself as the legendary James Dean. Someone like Franco who never smoked in his life had to jump to two packs a day to sink in his character.
Jamie Foxx
The “Django Unchained” star gave a splendid performance in “Ray”. He tried various experiments on himself to be 100% faithful to the legendary Ray Charles. He made it impossible for us to tell that he was playing another person. Jamie Foxx, who won an Oscar for this role, initially glued his eyelids shut. But when the experiment failed terribly, the crew switched to prosthetics.
Matthew McConaughey
If you have watched “Dallas Buyers Club” and “Interstellar”, you know that Matthew McCaughey doesn’t take his projects lightly. When he convinced the directors of “True Detective” to let him play detective Cohle, the actor made a 450-page research paper on his character.
Daniel Day-Lewis
Talking about actors who took wild steps for a role and not mention Daniel Day-Lewis is impossible. This versatile actor is known for giving every drop of his soul to the character. For “The Age of Innocence”, he walked around the city in clothes from the 19th- century for over two- months.
