Hollywood actors go all out to prepare for a part on the big screen. They put themselves through rigorous training, expose themselves to real-life pros, lose weight, gain weight and generally give it their all.

Tom Cruise – Collateral

Playing an assassin, Tom practiced blending into crowds by disguising himself to go unnoticed, including dressing as a FedEx worker and delivering packages.

Harrison Ford – The Fugitive

In prepping to play surgeon Dr. Richard Kimble, Harrison observed real-life heart surgeries. And when he tore a ligament during filming, he used his limp as part of his performance.

Adrien Brody – The Pianist

To feel the depth of loss in a real-life Holocaust survivor, Adrien broke up with his girlfriend, gave up all his possessions and moved to Europe.

Cast – Saving Private Ryan

The entire cast, except Matt Damon, underwent a rigorous boot camp to play WWII soldiers… director Steven Spielberg wanted the cast’s resentment of Damon to carry over into the film.

Mickey Rourke – Iron Man 2

To play supervillain Whiplash (aka Ivan Vanko), Mickey learned his lines in Russian and visited Moscow’s notorious Butyrka prison.

Cast – One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest

The actors lived for a while in the Oregon State Hospital and interacted with actual mental patients who would work as extras, adding realism to the Oscar-winning movie.

Natalie Portman – Black Swan

Natalie spent a whole year training eight hours a day so she could perform the intricate ballet moves — and peeled off 20 pounds, lost toenails and dislocated a rib.

Rooney Mara – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

To prepare physically for the title role of Lisbeth Salander, Rooney cut and dyed her hair and actually got piercings in her ears, lip, eyebrow and nose.

Kate Winslet – The Reader

To hone her concentration camp guard character’s German accent, Kate practiced at home while spending hours and hours reading to her real-life children.