With superhero films becoming popular for actors looking to boost their careers, there has been a myriad of performers in the past decade that have gone through extreme body transformations for their respective roles. Earlier this week, the internet predictably got caught up into a thirst trap when actor Kumail Nanjiani took it upon himself to share some new shirtless photos that can only be described as…impressive. While the actor is known less for his current “jacked as fuck” physique and more for his comedic chops, his ripped abs and bulging biceps now beg to differ. Some might even say that it’s a Big Sick-pack.
Kumail Nanjiani won the ‘beginning of the decade vs. end of the decade’ challenge pic.twitter.com/bQ9JclOoYa
— crazy spooked asian (@tribranchvo) December 16, 2019
Considering the actor’s previous lanky frame, it’s a shocking transformation that even the most hardened social media veterans didn’t see coming. As it turns out, Nanjiani is merely the latest in a long line of actors to take a big sip of that superhero movie Kool-Aid for his upcoming MCU role in The Eternals, but he definitely won’t be the last. With MCU newcomers like Nanjiani and Shang Chi’s Simu Liu getting absolutely jacked for their roles in upcoming films, here are 10 other Marvel makeovers we didn’t see coming.
Cover Photo: Marvel Entertainment
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Marvel Makeover Superhero Actor Transformations
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Hugh Jackman
They don’t call him "Huge Jacked-Man" for no reason. Jackman stayed ripped for the better part of 17 years playing Wolverine and it’s a miracle.
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Charlie Cox
Charlie Cox gained over 20 pounds of muscle for his role in Daredevil. However, the way that a blind lawyer manages to stay this cut is still a mystery.
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Ryan Reynolds
While Ryan Reynolds has always been in good shape ever since the Van Wilder days, he got absolutely ripped for his role in Blade: Trinity. It’s too bad that Green Lantern eventually covered the holy eight-pack with its computer-generated abs. What a shame.
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Andy Serkis
Although Andy Serkis is known for his motion-capture roles such as Gollum and Caesar, his role in Avengers: Age of Ultron proves that he’s capable of beefing up in real life.
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Tom Hardy
Tom Hardy was already in shape from his role the year previous in Warrior, but the British actor gained some serious size to play Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. Behold, the mass!
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Henry Cavill
As one of the most drastic superhero movie body transformations, it’s staggering to see how much muscle Henry Cavill put on for Man of Steel. This transformation solidified Cavill’s place on the coveted list of all-time cinematic beefcakes.
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Christian Bale
Even though Christian Bale is well known for his drastic body transformations, the actor had to gain over 100 pounds for his role in Batman Begins. Unfortunately, the actor gained a little too much weight, with the preproduction crew jokingly referring to Bale as “Fatman.” Ironically, Bale then had to slim down to get the physique you see in the movie.
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Chris Evans
Chris Evans has always been a picturesque human being, but he turned up the dial to eleven for his career-defining role as the titular character in the Captain America movies. His reveal in The First Avenger is an all-time hunk moment, especially within the barrage of hunky MCU moments. Essentially, we’re all Peggy in this situation.
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Chris Pratt
Aside from Nanjiani’s recent transformation himself, Chris Pratt’s MCU transformation is arguably the most dramatic. Although Pratt’s boyish good looks and rogue charm endeared us to him before the transformation, his shirtless moments simultaneously caused a whole generation of young women to fall in love with him.
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Chris Hemsworth
Actor-turned-Greek statue Chris Hemsworth is arguably the gold standard of how to gain a serious amount of mass for a superhero role. Simply put, Hemsworth is a beautiful person who has the ability to melt the hearts of ladies everywhere with a simple shirtless scene.
