Photo Credit: Warner Brothers
Christian Bale and Anne Hathaway have received a lot of well-deserved attention for their impressive physiques on display in The Dark Knight Rises. As incredible as Bale and Hathaway’s transformations were, Tom Hardy stole the show with the imposing body he built for his role as super villain Bane.
Since his breakout role in 2010’s Inception, Tom Hardy has radically changed his body multiple times and has gained notoriety in Hollywood circles for his incredible work ethic in the gym.
Photo Credit: collider.com/ c. Lionsgate
Following his role in Inception, Hardy was cast to play the lead in Warrior. A story about an ex-Marine turned MMA fighter who is preparing for the tournament of a life time. His physical transformation for the role was incredible. He went from looking very average in Inception, to the epitome of a fighters physique.
Hardy is not blessed with a great genetics for packing on muscle, but based on how he looked for his role as Bane in The Dark Knight Rises, you’d never know.
Tom Hardy Before the Gym
“I like to be other people, not me. And when you’re on the red carpet, it’s like, ‘Here’s Tom Hardy.’ I don’t want to be me. That’s why I play other people.”
Tom Hardy Training for Warrior.
While the transformation for Warrior was impressive, it pales in comparison to what he was able to accomplish for his role in The Dark Knight Rises. Bane is supposed to be Batman’s most physically imposing enemy and for the 5’9″ Tom Hardy, being larger than the 6’1″ Christian Bale meant it was going to be tough road.
The physicality of Bane meant Hardy couldn’t just bulk up, he had to be able to move and fight as well.
“No! Just kidding. Yeah, I’m getting old and it’s getting more difficult to get out and train; lifting weights, putting on weight, fighting. I think it might be that moment there (points at a picture of Bane and Batman battling on the streets), the first time I ever heard Christian say he was tired. Six months into the shooting.”
The secrets of Tom Hardy’s workout for Bane haven’t come out yet, but he weighed in at over 200 lbs. during filming. This means he put on nearly 30 lbs. since his appearance in Warrior, and on his 5′ 9″ frame … that’s a pretty major deal. It’s safe to say he was consuming a lot more calories and staying off the treadmill.
While he looked great in the role, all that weight gain caused him some problems during the summer. One day during filming he passed out in the heat and remained unconscious for most of the afternoon. He was pleased with his body for the movie, but the role definitely left him in worse shape.
“I pushed a lot of weight, I ate a lot and I didn’t do any cardio for about a year. So I ended up being really fat and now I am suffering the consequences. I have a big fat neck in it, yeah.”
Tom Hardy and Christian Bale look the part of super-humans and deliver performances for the ages in The Dark Knight Rises. If you haven’ seen it yet, you won’t be disappointed.
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