10 epic actor transformations as Sydney Sweeney trains to be a boxer

Sydney Sweeney has shared buff photos of herself as Christy Martin, the boxer she is set to play in a currently untitled biopic.

The actress has clearly been working out for the role, which will see her chart the “battles both inside and outside the ring”, of a woman whom she called “incredible”.

Martin has had an extraordinary life, competing well into her forties as she became a multiple champion. However, she experienced abuse at home.

Sweeney wrote: “Over the past few months, I've been immersed in training to bring to life the story of an incredible woman – a true champion who fought battles both inside and outside the ring.

“Her journey is a testament to resilience, strength, and hope, and I’m honoured to step into her shoes to share her powerful story with you all. more to come soon.”

Fans are looking forward to the film, which is the latest method-acting role – where an actor puts their body through a transformation just to play a character.

Here are 10 examples of famous faces looking unrecognisable.

Will Smith for King Richard

Will Smith is used to piling on the muscle for films such as I, Robot and Gemini Man, but faced an unusual challenge in 2020 in preparing for a role that required him to be overweight.

The actor put on kilos and walked with a limp to play Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena, and it paid off – initially – with his first Oscar for best actor.

On the back of this, Smith filmed a YouTube series called Best Shape of My Life, where he tried but failed to get back to his mid-2000s peak physique in his fifties.

50 Cent for All Things Fall Apart 

Another rapper turned actor, Fiddy is known for looking toned and trim – as the opening seconds of breakout hit In Da Club will attest.

In 2010, however, he looked like a shadow of himself when he played a cancer patient, Deon, for All Things Fall Apart – dropping from 97kg to 72kg in nine weeks.

Curtis Jackson, as he was born, said that the experience came naturally after he dropped below 70kg in 2000 when he was shot in the jaw and could only drink liquids in his recovery.

Natalie Portman for Thor

Portman trained for 10 months to play Jane in Love and Thunder, starting off with conditioning exercises before moving onto weights.

The actress achieved her transformation on a vegan diet, adding protein powder to help her recovery.

Portman previously admitted to taking up smoking to prepare to play Jackie Kennedy in the 2017 biopic.

Tom Hardy for The Dark Knight Rises

Hardy took his workouts and diet to the extreme to prepare to play the villain Bane in the third Dark Knight trilogy film in 2012.

The actor consumed around 3,300 calories per day for the role, eating six meals.

He is also seen with a shaved head to look even more imposing – although it was his odd voice in the film that lasts longer in the memory.

Jared Leto for Morbius, Chapter 27, Requiem for a Dream, House of Gucci

Leto has gone from one extreme to another over the course of his career and sometimes even within the making of a film – in the case of Morbius.

For Requiem for a Dream (2000), he lost 11kg to play a heroin addict, while for Dallas Buyers Club (2013) he shed 18kg to play a HIV sufferer.

But he gained 30kg in 2007 for Chapter 27 and also sported a portly physique and bald appearance for House of Gucci (2021).

Hilary Swank for Million Dollar Baby

Sweeney is not the first actress to bulk up to play a boxer – Hilary Swank did the same for a memorable turn in the film Million Dollar Baby (2004).

Swank trained for five hours per day to put on 8kg of muscle and it was worth it for her academy award win.

Joaquin Phoenix for Joker

For his role as another Batman baddie, Phoenix lost 23kg to play the troubled Arthur Fleck in his origin story of becoming Joker.

The 2020 film was a success, which saw Phoenix lose the weight again for the recent sequel – but he recently admitted he “probably would not do it again”.

Gal Gadot for Wonder Woman

Israeli actress Gadot has previously been in her country’s army but took on the training of her life to play a superhero.

Her trainer, Magnus Lygdback, put together a rigorous programme to test every element of her fitness to get her ready for the film.

But even superheroes have rest days, he admitted to Women’s Health.

Mark Wahlberg for Father Stu

"I put on 30 pounds and went from being a guy who was in fighting shape to a guy who was wheelchair-bound, suffering from a rare muscular degenerative disease," Wahlberg said of his 2022 film, Father Stu.

Wahlberg gained the weight in three weeks by eating 11,000 calories per day and not exercising in order to meet the demands of the shoot.

Christian Bale for The Mechanist, Batman, American Hustle, Exodus: Gods and Kings

And finally, the master of the body transformation must be Christian Bale, who dropped from 78kg to 49kg for The Mechanist – with thanks to a coffee and cigarette diet.

The 2004 film was on the back of his buff turn as Patrick Bateman in American Psycho though he had already done most of the hard work as, one year prior to this, he had bulked up to play the title role in Batman Begins.

Then, in 2013, he ballooned up to 103kg for American Hustle before needing to promptly get into epic shape once more for Exodus: Gods and Kings.