Top 10 Most Difficult Movie Roles Ever
#10: The Joker
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“The Dark Knight” (2008) Playing a character like Batman’s deranged arch-nemesis The Joker can take a lot out of an actor. Joaquin Phoenix said he “felt overwhelmed and terrified” about the role. Maybe he heard what Heath Ledger had put himself through? In order to portray the Clown Prince of Crime, Ledger spent about a month isolated in a hotel room to tap into the madness of The Joker, including how he speaks and laughs. Ledger also reportedly struggled with insomnia, claiming to get only around two hours of sleep per night. Tragically, Ledger passed away before “The Dark Knight” was released. But his performance cemented him as an absolute master of his craft.
#9: Nina Sayers
“Black Swan” (2010) The life of a ballerina can be very controversially grueling and demanding, as Natalie Portman learned firsthand when she starred in this psychological thriller.a To play Nina, a ballerina who puts herself through hell to play the dual lead roles in "Swan Lake," Portman put herself through the wringer. The already diminutive Portman reportedly lost 20 pounds to play Nina, and worked out for five hours a day to achieve the look of a ballerina. She also paid for her own dancing lessons. Production took a massive toll on Portman, who experienced a concussion and a rib dislocation. If we didn’t know any better, we would have guessed Portman was a professional ballerina all along.
#8: Boyd “Bible”' Swan
“Fury” (2014) Shia LaBeouf had a supporting role in this World War II drama, but his commitment to his character was so great, he could’ve carried a movie all on his own. In order to really feel like his character — a member of an American tank crew in Germany — LaBeouf reportedly went months without showering, ripped out his tooth, and cut himself in the face. LaBeouf also reportedly converted to Christianity to play the religious Boyd. His co-stars were reportedly so bothered by LaBeouf's lack of hygiene and other method acting that he was made to stay in a bed and breakfast separate from them during filming. We’re just glad we didn’t have to smell LaBeouf’s devotion to his craft.
#7: Aileen Wuornos
“Monster” (2003) The glamorous Charlize Theron went through one of the most stunning on-screen transformations ever to play real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos. To play Wuornos, Theron put on thirty pounds, shaved her eyebrows off, wore dentures, and had her gorgeous blonde hair thinned and fried. Theron also had tattoo ink applied to her skin to give her an appropriately ravaged look. Theron is all but unrecognizable as Wuornos, and she won a well-deserved Oscar for her work. It takes more than a physical transformation to deliver a great performance, but Theron definitely gave this role her all.
#6: Fantine
“Les Misérables” (2012) We know that Anne Hathaway was an exceptionally talented and charming actress. But “Les Misérables” showed just how devoted she was. In this adaptation of the musical, based on Victor Hugo’s novel, Hathaway plays the destitute and desperate Fantine, who contributes some of the movie’s most heartbreaking moments. This includes the show-stopping ballad “I Dreamed a Dream.” Hathaway, who along with other cast members, did live singing for the film, lost 25 pounds from her already-thin frame and had her actual hair cut on-camera. When you see her work in “Les Misérables,” you can easily see how Hathaway won an Oscar for it.
#5: Jake LaMotta
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“Raging Bull” (1980) Robert De Niro didn’t just act like middleweight boxer Jake LaMotta in Martin Scorsese’s uncompromising biopic. He became LaMotta. To play the prizefighter, De Niro trained for three months with the real LaMotta, and won two boxing matches to prove he could carry himself in the ring. The movie also chronicles LaMotta’s post-boxing career as an aging stand-up comedian. To achieve the right look, De Niro gained about 60 pounds. How'd he do it? By feasting all around France and northern Italy during a filming break. This apparently took such a toll on De Niro and his appearance that Scorsese likened De Niro's breathing to an asthma attack. A new disturbing standard was set for method acting devotion.
#4: Wladyslaw Szpilman
“The Pianist” (2002) "The Pianist," a movie about real-life Polish-Jewish pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman and his struggles to survive in Nazi-occupied Warsaw, is incredibly powerful. This is in no small part to Adrien Brody's Oscar-winning performance as Szpilman. To embody the titular pianist, Brody took up the piano, lost 31 pounds by subsisting on a light daily diet and did away with his car and apartment. Brody’s dedication resulted in a truly haunting performance, one that transcends acting to become something more like a transformation. It’s also a devastating depiction of historical horrors that must never be forgotten.
#3: Christy Brown
“My Left Foot” (1989) Daniel Day-Lewis’ commitment to his roles is well-known. And when the camera stops rolling, Day-Lewis stays in character. In his first Oscar-winning performance, Day-Lewis played Christy Brown, a writer and painter whose cerebral palsy left him only able to control one appendage: his left foot. Day-Lewis was so devoted to the character that he had others on set assist him with eating, and stayed in his wheelchair. His posture also resulted in him breaking two ribs. His commitment reportedly rubbed some of the crew the wrong way, but there’s no questioning Day-Lewis’ unbelievable skills as an actor.
#2: Hugh Glass
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“The Revenant” (2015) For years, movie fans wondered what it would take for Leonardo DiCaprio to finally win an Oscar. Well, he finally did for 2015's "The Revenant," a performance with enough dedication for multiple Oscars. To play real-life fur trapper Hugh Glass, who endured an amazing story of survival, DiCaprio himself went through extreme difficulties. Filming mostly outdoors during the bitter cold of a Canadian winter, DiCaprio learned how to survive in the elements, which included starting a fire, eating raw bison liver (despite being a vegetarian), and sleeping inside the carcass of a dead animal. He also swam in freezing rivers numerous times, which may have resulted in hypothermia. Talk about getting into character and staying there.
#1: Trevor Reznik
“The Machinist” (2004) Most of the performances on this list won Oscars. But this wasn’t even nominated. Then again, the Academy usually doesn’t go for movies like “The Machinist,” an intense psychological thriller about a factory worker wracked by insomnia and psychological anguish. To play machinist Reznik, Christian Bale dropped 62 pounds, and weighed only about 120 pounds during filming. To do this, he would consume an apple, water and a cup of coffee each day. He reportedly wanted to go down to 99 pounds, but this was shut down due to health concerns. After filming was over, Bale had only six months to bulk up for his next role. The role? Batman. As we now all know, Christian Bale will go far for his roles.
