One way to get noticed in Hollywood is to go through a shocking physical transformation for a film. There is no question that appearance plays a big part in how a character comes across, and these 10 actors made the ultimate sacrifice – their health – in order to do a role justice.
Above: Matt Damon in The Talented Mr Ripley (1999) and Courage Under Fire (1996)
Matt Damon
Courage Under Fire
On the spectrum of ways to lose weight the unhealthy way, Matt Damon’s experience is an extreme example that had long term effects on his health.
Damon played a heroin addict in Courage Under Fire for which he needed to be visibly underweight. He has said of his daily routine, “I’d run six-and-a-half miles in the morning and six-and-a-half miles at night and I’d eat just chicken breast, egg whites, one baked potato a day, no butter, no salt and a lot of coffee, a lot of cigarettes. … It was really stupid.” After filming ended, Damon spent several months on medication to repair damage to his adrenal gland.
