Celebrity Transformations for a Role

News By TooFab Staff | 5/26/2015 10:20 AM PT

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See which stars have totally transformed themselves with the help of heavy prosthetics, wigs and/or real life alterations like weight gains and weight loss.

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David Harbour is embracing gray hair, more facial hair, and a fat suit while filming for his upcoming film, Evil Genius. The actor was spotted on set on November 10, 2025 in Woodbridge, New Jersey.

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For her acting return in Hulu's All's Fair, Jessica Simpson was transformed to appear like she had a botched nose job. Her character, LeAnn, felt pressure from her husband to go under the knife, telling her legal representation, "We’ve been married almost 3 years. I knew he had had one affair — probably more. So when he had told me to get plastic surgery, I couldn’t say no." LeAnn goes on to win her legal battle and also get revenge on her ex.

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After surprising everyone with his thinner appearance at the 2025 Venice Film Festival (right), Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson confirmed he's "process of slimming down" for another Benny Safdie project called Lizard Music. He said he'll play "a very whimsical and eccentric 70-something-year-old man" in the film, adding that when it comes to his weight, "I still have a long ways to go."

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Channing Tatum revealed body transformations he's undergone for recent roles, writing, "We back up! lol. 1st photo is today 205. 2nd photo 235 for a movie called Josephine. Then went to 3rd photo which is 172 for a movie Roofman. I’m so grateful for my genetics. Grateful for my chef/nutritionist/witch. Grateful for my trainer. I couldn’t make these big swings in my weight without you guys. But i won’t be doing anymore fat roles haha. It’s to hard on the body and to hard to take off now. But damn when i look at these pics it’s just wild what the human body and will can do." Tatum further explained in an interview with Variety that he dropped more weight for Roofman than anticiapted, and it caused the crew to become concerned, especially since it impacted his wellbeing. ""It was a sort of emptiness and a sadness to it. I would just see myself, and I would seem hollow. And the movie, a lot for me, was a lot on loneliness, and a real meditation for that wanting to be full and trying to fill an empty vessel," the actor explained.

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For Karate Kid: Legends, Joshua Jackson revealed he put on 20lbs for the role. He increased his weight from 175 to 195, so he could embody his role as a former heavy weight champion turned pizzeria owner. On the Today show, he shared he was eating 4000 calories a day, and it was harder than he thought it would be: "The training part is the fun part of my job. Every time you pick up a new job, you’ve gotta pick up a new skill. But the training hits different at 45, 46 than it did when I was in my 20s."

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Johnny Depp looks unrecognizable for his Hollywood return alongside Penelope Cruz in director Marc Webb's Day Drinker. Depp plays a "mysterious" guest on a yacht who finds himself entangled with the bartender (Madelym Cline) and a high profile criminal (Cruz).

Lionsgate

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Nicholas Galitzine teased his transformation for his role of He-Man in Masters of the Universe. The British actor showed a portion of the muscle mass he's put on while writing on Instagram, "After several months of intense training, I’m thrilled to share that we’re officially in production on #MastersOfTheUniverse. Our director Travis Knight has assembled the most incredible ensemble cast and created a stunning tapestry of Eternia and its surrounding world. I can’t wait for you to see. More to come, but until then, here’s a sneak peek at the Sword of Power. By the power of Grayskull!"

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Mark Wahlberg shared a video of him shaving his head for his upcoming role in the film Flight Risk. The actor plays a pilot tasked with escorting a U.S. Marshall across the Alaskan wilderness as they travel to New York City. Wahlberg captioned his Instagram post with, "Check out @flightriskmovie 🥸🔥🎥🎬 keeping it real🥸 no bald cap🥸🥸 NO CAP🔥."

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Nicholas Galitzine shows off his physical transformation as he prepares to play He-Man in a live action Masters of the Universe film, giving fans a glimpse at his buff body and longer hair.

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Sydney Sweeney is taking on a new type of role as she has transformed herself to play the real-life female boxer, Christy Martin. Sweeney posted some pics showing off the transformative hair style, sweats and notable muscle build. The actress captioned the photo with "well the cats out of the bag thanks to some paps in bushes so here’s a little bts from my film im working on right now. over the past few months, i’ve been immersed in training to bring to life the story of an incredible woman—a true champion who fought battles both inside and outside the ring. her journey is a testament to resilience, strength, and hope, and I’m honored to step into her shoes to share her powerful story with you all. more to come soon :)"

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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson transforms into MMA fighter Mark Kerr in the first official photo from A24's Benn Safdie drama The Smashing Machine. The movie will reunite Johnson with his Jungle Cruise costar Emily Blunt.

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Jennifer Grey shared the first photo of her transformation to play controversial Remnant Fellowship Church and Weigh Down Workshop founder Gwen Shamblin Lara for the upcoming Lifetime film, Gwen Shamblin: Starving for Salvation.

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"Words can’t describe how immensely honored I feel to play the mermaid of my dreams, Ariel in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Come under the sea with me, in theaters May 26, 2023," writes Halle Bailey as she shares the first poster showing her as Ariel in the live-action The Little Mermaid. See the full poster in the next slide.

Watch the First Footage from the Film Here

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Watch the First Footage from the Film Here

Getty/Walt Disney Pictures

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Matilda Lutz transforms into Red Sonja in the first photo from the upcoming film of the same name from Millennium Media. Principal photography is already underway in Bulgaria.

Millennium Media/Getty

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Sense8 actress Jamie Clayton transforms into a female Pinhead for Hulu's new Hellraiser film. Speaking with EW, director David Bruckner said, "We felt a kind of anticipation around the fans to reimagine the character. We knew we wanted Pinhead to be a woman. Jamie was just the right person for the role ... Jamie absolutely killed, that's how we got there."

Read Full Interview with Director Here

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Quinta Brunson turns into Oprah for Roku's new movie 'WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story' starring Daniel Radcliffe.

Roku / Getty

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Hayden Christensen reveals how he transformed into Darth Vader for Disney+'s Obi-Wan Kenobi series. In an interview with Fatherly, he said, "I think that process was very important for me, I needed to become that character again, physically. I just consumed as many calories as possible. I put on 25 or 30 pounds to fill out that [Vader] suit." He added, "I try to avoid the dad bod thing and I was trying to maintain that Vader body after we finished. But, honestly, I pretty much just went back to my old diet. I kind of deflated after that."

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Warner Bros. has revealed the first photo of Ryan Gosling as Ken from the upcoming Barbie film, due out July 21, 2023. See Margot Robbie as the titular character in the next slide.

Warner Bros.

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Margot Robbie portrays "Barbie"

Margot Robbie transforms into the iconic doll as Warner Bros. announces a July 21, 2023 release date for its live-action "Barbie" movie.

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Jamie Campbell Bower's transformation into Vecna on Stranger Things took seven and a half hours in the makeup chair. According to the actor, what you see on the show is "90%" him, with CGI enhancing the movement of the vines on his body. He told Variety he asked to sit in costume for 30 minutes before filming -- and then, after 10-12 hours on set, it would take another hour to remove everything.

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Bradley Cooper is unrecognizable in new photos from Netflix's Maestro, in which he plays real-life composer Leonard Bernstein. Cooper is also directing the film, his directorial follow-up to A Star Is Born. It's due out in 2023.

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Jessica Biel transforms into axe murderer Candy Montgomery in Hulu's new series 'Candy.'

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Tom Hanks transforms into Geppetto in the first look at Disney+'s live-action Pinocchio movie. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth stars as the titular puppet come to life, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Jiminy Cricket and Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy. Keegan-Michael Key, Lorraine Bracco and Luke Evans also star. The movie will hit the streamer in September 2022.

Everett Collection/Disney+

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Roku released the first official photo of Daniel Radcliffe as Weird Al from WEIRD: The 'Weird Al' Yankovic Story. "Wearing the Hawaiian shirt is a huge responsibility that I don't take lightly, and I'm honored to finally share with the world the absolutely 100 percent unassailably true story of Weird Al's depraved and scandalous life," said Radcliffe in a statement.

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Renee Zellweger is unrecognizable as real-life convicted murderer Pam Hupp for NBC's The Thing About Pam. Her transformation included prosthetics and a padded suit. Both Judy Greer and Josh Duhamel also star in the series -- and rock some transformative wigs of their own. The show premieres March 8, 2022.

Watch a Trailer for The Thing About Pam Here!

Getty/NBC

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Elle Fanning in first photos as Michelle Carter -- the young woman convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the real-life "texting suicide case" -- from Hulu's "The Girl from Plainville." The show will premiere Spring 2022.

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Sofia Vergara transforms into Colombian drug lord Griselda Blanco for the upcoming Netflix miniseries "Griselda."

Instagram/Netflix

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Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana in the upcoming season of Netflix's "The Crown."

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Dominic West as Prince Charles in the upcoming season of Netflix's "The Crown."

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Imelda Staunton is transformed into Queen Elizabeth II for the upcoming fifth season of "The Crown."

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Joaquin Phoenix was spotted on the set of "Disappointment Blvd" in Canada looking nearly unrecognizable without his longer locks. The 46-year-old previously lost 52 pounds to play the Joker.

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Amazon Prime Video the first official photo of Jensen Ackles in the Soldier Boy supersuit for Season 3 of The Boys. "He's the f'n Captain now, America," the show captioned the photo on Instagram.

Amazon Prime Video

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"Ain’t no rest for the EVIL 😈 Can’t wait for you all to meet Lady Lesso #SchoolForGoodAndEvil @netflixfilm," Charlize Theron captioned this photo (right) in character for her upcoming Netflix film, "The School for Good and Bad."

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Jensen Ackles looks unrecognizable on set for Amazon Prime's "The Boys."

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Sebastian Stan and Lily James transform into Tommy Lee and Pamela Anderson for Hulu's "Pam & Tommy" limited series.

Hulu

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Lily James transforms into Pamela Anderson for Hulu's "Pam & Tommy" limited series.

Hulu

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Sebastian Stan transforms into Tommy Lee for Hulu's "Pam & Tommy" limited series.

Hulu

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"My co-stars @imsebastianstan and @lilyjamesofficial are a lot cooler than I am," says Seth Rogen, who will play Rand Gauthier, the man who stole Pam and Tommy's sex tape in "Pam & Tommy."

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"I’m up about 20 😂 Inspired to be better! I’m going up another 20. Yes it’s for a role. ✝️🙏❤️" Mark Wahlberg reveals he had 6 weeks to gain 30 pounds for Father Stu role. Per Entertainment Tonight, Wahlberg explains how he did it saying, "I tried to do it in a healthy way. It was a dozen eggs and a dozen pieces of bacon, two baked potatoes, a Porterhouse steak, two bowls of white rice, and a glass of olive oil." He added, "The second two weeks were a lot of carbs. The last two weeks starches, and then sodium, just to kind of get as bloated as possible. So not a lot of fun."

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Nicole Kidman is transformed into Lucille Ball on the set of Being the Ricardos.

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Jared Leto transforms into the Joker for Zack Snyder's upcoming "Justice League."

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Kristen Stewart is unrecognizable as she transforms into Princess Diana for the upcoming film "Spencer."

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First look at Sarah Paulson transformed into Linda Tripp for "American Crime Story: Impeachment"

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Emmy Rossum looks unrecognizable on the set of her new film while in character as L.A. Billboard Diva Angelyne.

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Ben Affleck reveals he "just let it go" by eating "a gallon of ice cream at midnight" to play the role of an alcoholic "who drinks a case of beer a day" in his new movie, The Way Back. While he's dropped back down to 210 pounds since filming, he said he got up to 245. "It was about just eating as much junk food and carbs," he added.

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Blake Lively debuted two looks from her upcoming film "The Rhythm Section" and is nearly unrecognizable.

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Chris Messina gained 45 pounds for his role in "Live By Night"

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Mark-Paul Gosselaar says he gained a "substantial" amount of weight for his role on Fox's upcoming "Pitch." He also grew a beard -- and his wife isn't happy about either!

Click here to see what he said about his wild transformation!

Fox/Getty

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Jeffrey Dean Morgan lost 40 pounds for his role in "Texas Rising."

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Miles Teller bulked up for his role as a boxer in "Bleed for This."

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Grant Gustin on the set of "The Flash."

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Jake Gyllenhaal slims down for his role in "Nightcrawler."

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Nick Jonas bulked up for his role as an MMA fighter in "Navy St."

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Mark Wahlberg packed on 40 pounds in two months to play a bodybuilder in "Pain & Gain."

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Charlie & Max Carver hit the gym to prepare for their roles on MTV's "Teen Wolf."

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Jared Leto went on a fast to drop weight in order to play a transsexual in "The Dallas Buyer's Club."

Twitter/Terry Richardson

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Joseph Gordon-Levitt bulked up for his role in "Don Jon's Addiction."

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Colin Farrell seriously bulked up his arms between filming "Fright Night" (left) and "Dead Man Down" (right).

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Jeremy Renner bulked up his arms to play Hawkeye in "The Avengers."

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Robert Downey Jr. gained 20 pounds of muscle for "Iron Man 2."

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Alexander Ludwig gained 30 to 40 pounds to play Cato in "The Hunger Games."

Everett Collection/Lionsgate

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Gerard Butler seriously bulked up for "300."

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Will Smith had to really pack on the pounds to play famous boxer Muhammad Ali in "Ali."

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Natalie Portman dropped 20 to play a ballerina in "Black Swan."

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Tom Hanks lost 50 pounds to play a stranded FedEx employee in "Cast Away."

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Chris Hemsworth gained 20lb. of muscle to play "Thor."

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Renee Zellweger gained 30 pounds twice -- to play the title character in "Bridget Jones's Diary" and "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason."

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Ryan Reynolds buffed up to play Nightstalker Hannibal King in "Blade: Trinity."

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Zac Efron gained 18 pounds to play a Marine in "The Lucky One."

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Russell Crowe gained 60 pounds for "Body of Lies."

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Jason Momoa gained 20 pounds to play Conan the Barbarian.

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Jared Leto gained 60 pounds to play John Lennon's murderer, Mark David Chapman, in "Chapter 27."

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Matt Damon gained 30 pounds to play a whistleblower in "The Informant."

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Taylor Lautner gained 30 pounds between "Twilight" and "New Moon" to show Jacob Black's transformation into a werewolf.

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Hugh Jackman buffed up to play Wolverine in all three "X-Men" movies and the solo sequel.

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Christian Bale lost 62 pounds to play an insomniac in "The Machinist."

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Seth Rogen lost around 30 pounds to play The Green Hornet.

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Charlize Theron gained about 25 pounds and totally transformed her appearance to play serial killer Aileen Wuornos in "Monster."

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Chris Evans gained about 20 pounds to play the title superhero in "Captain America."

Celebrity Transformations for a Role

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