Movies - TV
Becoming Bane For The Dark Knight Rises Took Its Toll On Tom Hardy
By STEVEN WARD
Tom Hardy is no stranger to putting his body through workout hell to bulk up for a role, with performances in “Warrior” and “Bronson” testaments to that. However, it was his transformation to portray Bane in “The Dark Knight Rises” that really pushed Hardy to his limit.
While following a brutal exercise routine to put on as much muscle as possible, he also ate as much as he could to put on the weight necessary to make him look larger than costar Christian Bale. Hardy said he worked out three to four hours a day and “ate a lot,”, particularly a lot of pizza.
Hardy admitted that consuming all that pizza wasn’t great for his health or his heart, leading the actor to struggle to maintain exhausting eating habits while also trying to act. Since Hardy focused on getting his upper body to look as big as possible, the actor neglected his lower body, sharing that he wore multiple pairs of pants to make his legs look bigger.
“I think you pay the price with any drastic physical changes. It was alright when I was younger, to put myself under that kind of duress, but I think as you get into your 40s you have to be more mindful of the rapid training,” said Hardy, who was 33 at the time of filming. Hardy said he now has "joints that click that probably shouldn't click," which just goes to show you that stunt work isn't the only way actors can damage their bodies.