10 Actors Who Went Through Hell To Win An Oscar

Few things wow the Academy voters more than a significant physical transformation - and Charlize Theron most pointedly delivered this with the role that saw her named Best Actress at the 2004 ceremony.

Monster - the first feature film from future Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins - cast Theron as Aileen Wuornos, a mentally ill serial killer who was controversially given the death penalty in Florida barely a year prior to the film's release.

Given the model-turned-actress had typically been cast in eye candy roles, her radically different look here was a revelation. She gained 30 pounds in weight, shaved off her eyebrows and wore prosthetic make-up which rendered her unrecognisable.

Of course, while the 'uglying up' for the role clearly helped, it's Theron's performance itself that really shines. No less an authority than Roger Ebert declared that Theron gave "one of the greatest performances in the history of cinema."