It was achieved in 1987 with 31 kg gained by ‘Full Metal Jacket’ and since then it has not been surpassed
The work of an actor sometimes requires true physical transformations. There are very famous cases like that of Chris Pratt for his role in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ that would transform him forever into an action hero, or that of the unrecognizable Jared Leto and Charlize Theron in ‘Dallas Buyers Club’ and ‘Monster’ , respectively. But did you know that there is a Guinness record for highest weight gained in a role?
When talking about swings in your body mass the ideal candidate is Christian Bale. The British actor (88 kg when American Psycho was released) had to lose 28 kilos to play his character in ‘The Machinist’, and then had to quickly regain them to play Batman in ‘Batman Begins’. Other big changes in his career include having lost 26 kg for ‘Dawn Rescue’ or gaining 14 for ‘American Hustle’.
Although it is not for lack of trying, Bale does not currently have any record in this regard. But who does have it is Vincent D’Onofrio. The one who at that time was a fairly unknown face won the Guinness Award for highest weight gained for a film role in 1987, when he gained 31.75 kg for ‘Full Metal Jacket’.
A proposition that marked him forever
For the actor it was not a very complicated decision. Kubrick was already considered at that time one of the great filmmakers of the time and D’Onofrio’s short career made him think that his role would serve as a good boost. After his audition, the director warned him that he would have to gain weight for the role, “De Niro had just done it with ‘Raging Bull,’ so I thought if De Niro can do it, so can I!” He commented in an interview.
He initially gained 13 kilos, but Kubrick told him that it was not enough and he ended up gaining more than double the weight. Not only winning it, the actor also had to lose it for the second half of the film. D’Onofrio admitted to feeling almost like a different person during that time: “People treat you differently when you’re that size.. From being a lanky actor to someone burly, it was a very strange life change.”
Unlike Bale or other actors, D’Onofrio’s change would end up marking his career. His corpulence in the role would in fact be the popular image that permeated the Hollywood imagination, and the role effectively marked a before and after in the life of the performer who has since starred in roles such as the now legendary Kingpin in the series ‘ Daredevil’.
In Espinof | “It’s so much better than Star Wars.” George Lucas believes that this is the definitive science fiction film and it is very difficult for anyone to surpass it one day
In Espinof | The ending of ‘2001, a space odyssey’ explained by Stanley Kubrick himself. “It’s like a zoo,” the director said of his sci-fi masterpiece
