He’s As Strong As Christian Bale Or Robert De Niro: These 4 Jake Gyllenhaal Physical Transformations Impressed Us

It’s been more than thirty years (already!) since he started his career in Hollywood. We’re quick to forget that Jake Gyllenhaal frequented movie sets very early on because of his family’s industry connections. He made his acting debut playing Billy Crystal’s son in the comedy Life, Love, Cows in 1991.

And he has come a long way since then. First noticed with roles in Don Darko, the blockbuster The Day After Tomorrow, then the brilliant The Secret of Brokeback Mountain, he did not hesitate to turn to action cinema.

Which requires a certain sports discipline and imposes physical transformations. To the point of becoming a reference of the genre, but not without leaving author’s cinema. Take a look at some of her most impressive transformations.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)

To play Prince of Persia Prince Dastan, Jake Gyllenhaal immersed himself in a training regimen that focused on parkour, martial arts and rock climbing. Took gymnastics and wrestling lessons, as well as outdoor training to master the character’s moves. As such, he revealed a drier and more toned body in the interview to play the title character SlashFilm :

“The character development was very physical at first, it was getting in shape, doing all these things, learning parkour, learning sword fighting, learning to get into the mentality of a warrior who, as written, can actually fight. This was an important aspect for me and I knew that if I could do that I would be halfway there. In fact, it’s just a lot of exercise, running and all kinds of sports.“

Night Call (2014)

To play the role of Lou Bloom in Night Call, a cameraman obsessed with success at all costs and a truly tortured mind, Jake Gyllenhaal lost more than 15 kg. He followed a strict diet based on low-calorie meals – because his character eats very little, among other things, because he does not have a lot of money – and a lot of running to dry, as he explains, at the microphone of Howard Stern.

Rage in the Stomach (2015)

To fill the shoes of boxer Billy Hope, Gyllenhaal underwent intense training for six hours a day, including strength training, cardio and boxing techniques. A return to form, which was all the more difficult because it was followed by La Rage au stomak, after filming the night call. said director Antoine Fuqua Vanity Fair How it made him a real boxer:

“After starring in Nightcrawler, he was a bit thin and had to bulk up. We practiced twice a day for about six months before the shooting. What he did was I made him train with me because I train every day. So he could do it with my trainer. Then he had to take time off to shoot Everest, so we tried to have someone with him to help us along the way. Then, as soon as he came back, we trained for four months, where he went. Jake was in the ring every day.“

Road House (2024)

In Road House, Jake Gyllenhaal plays a former MMA champion. The task is already difficult enough in itself, but he has to overcome an additional difficulty: to be physically credible and in the fight scenes against the real former MMA champion, Conor McGregor.

To get in shape, Gyllenhaal began a rigorous two-month training regimen. “We trained for two months, I mean I’m still in pretty good shape, but we trained really hard for two months, grappling, a lot of MMA and then just being in shape.He explained to Jimmy Fallon.

His dedication to the role extended beyond the gym. Jake Gyllenhaal maintained a disciplined diet, eating six to seven meals a day to fuel his workouts. He needed at least that to fight the colossus that was his opponent.