THE CHOSEN FEW: Blockbuster prep

Some actors are known for going the extra mile for their craft – Michael Fassbender starved himself for Hunger, as did Christian Bale for his role in Machinist. This month’s movie releases are pretty exciting, and the respective cast members have done some weird and wonderful things in preparation. We have a death-defying stunt, a myrmecologist (that’s someone who studies ants), a gruelling exercise regime, and an interview showdown…

Paul Rudd – Ant-Man

Prep: Studied ants.
To prepare for his role as an action hero that shrinks to the size of an ant (hence the name Ant Man), Paul Rudd studied ants. And that doesn’t mean that he read a few Wikipedia articles. In between his intense fitness regime, which included “eating a lot of meat” and training every day, he hit the books. So much so that he actually produced a list of his favourite ants for the New York Times. Some reports suggest that he bought an ant farm, but apparently the real story is that there was an art farm on set… and Rudd says they all died one day.
Release date: Out now

Tom Cruise – Mission Impossible Rogue Nation

Prep: Had a special lens made to cover his eyeball.
Tom Cruise sat down with producers and discussed how he could outdo the Burj Khalifa stunt he performed in Ghost Protocol. Cruise – who is famed for doing all his own stunts – came up with clinging to the side of a military plane flying 5,000ft above the British countryside. After fending off strong opposition from health and safety advisers, he got the green light. One of the main obstacles they faced was keeping Cruise’s eyes open in the presence of hard air, so his eye specialist designed a bespoke lens that can cover the entire eyeball. Fearless Cruise, playing Ethan Hunt, had to attempt the stunt eight times until the director was satisfied!
Release date: Out now

Cara Delevingne – Paper Towns

Prep: Read the book!
While this may not seem like a weird or wonderful way to prepare for the lead role in a film, Cara’s been in the news lately for sparking an interesting debate in Hollywood. We’ve probably all seen the awkward interview by now (if not, watch it above), where she’s told off by hosts on Good Morning Sacramento for appearing rude. But the backlash almost broke the internet, with thousands backing Cara up for giving a sarcastic response to the patronising question, “Did you read the book?” Many say that male stars are often asked intelligent questions, while female stars are treated like brainless eye-candy.
Release date: Out now

Miles Teller – Fantastic Four

Prep: Didn’t read the comics.
In complete reverse of Cara Delevingne’s swatting, Miles Teller revealed that the cast of Fantastic Four were told not to delve too deeply into the comic books. When Miles and co. mentioned to directors and producers that they had been doing their background research, they were informed that the film would be very different to the comics. “We were actually kind of told not to necessarily ingest everything because we were looking to put our own stamp on it,” Miles told reporters.
Release date: August 13

Jake Gyllenhaal – Southpaw

Prep: Did 2,000 sit ups per day.
Gyllenhaal’s crazy workout to get ripped for Southpaw is tiring just to think about. His trainer Terry Claybon outlined a daily routine of 2,000 sit ups, 100 pull-ups, 100 dips, 2 sets of 100 squats, an eight mile run, and boxing workouts including punching and sparring. Gyllenhaal took the whole thing very seriously because he didn’t want the movie to be an old boxing cliché. By the time they started filming, his trainers said that he didn’t just look like a pro boxer, he moved like one too.
Release date: August 27

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