10 Actors Who Went Through Hell To Win An Oscar
5. Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
The 2000s saw Anne Hathaway successfully transition from teen-friendly girl next door to a serious, mature actress, but it was Tom Hopper's 2012 adaptation of the famed stage musical which saw her win her first Oscar.
Hathaway was cast as Fantine, a prostitute dying of tuberculosis. Not the cheeriest of roles, and by all accounts it didn't leave the actress with the cheeriest disposition. She lost 25 pounds in weight, cut off her hair, and apparently sent her husband home from the London set in order to embrace the character's loneliness.
Her performance - which includes arguably the most famous song from the musical, I Dreamed A Dream - has a particular potency thanks to director Hopper's insistence on the cast all singing their songs live on camera, rather than overdubbing the vocals in afterwards as is the norm.
Alas, it seems playing Fantine really took its toll, as Hathaway admitted that she feigned happiness when accepting her Best Supporting Actress award, explaining, "I kind of lost my mind doing that movie, and it hadn't come back yet."