10 Actors Who Perfected Roles YEARS Before The Movie
3. Richard Gere Worked With Homeless New Yorkers For Over A Decade - Time Out Of Mind
Richard Gere received rave reviews for his performance in 2014's Time Out of Mind which, far away from the actor's tendency to play suave sophisticates, cast him as George, a homeless man who seeks to reconnect with his estranged daughter Maggie (Jena Malone).
But this wasn't merely an attempt by Gere to play against-type - prior to the film's release, he spent 12 years working with New York's Coalition for the Homeless, an organisation fighting to combat America's homeless epidemic and destigmatise homelessness.
His work with the charity ultimately heavily informed his performance as George, drawing on the experiences of the many homeless New Yorkers he encountered for more than a decade prior to the film's shoot.