2. Christian Bale The Machinist (2004)
Christian Bale was in tip-top shape well before Batman Begins, from movies like American Psycho and Equilibrium. But then he went and pulled a Christian Bale before that was even a thing. Bale lost 63 pounds, reportedly eating only one apple per day. He did this primarily alone, without a trainer, who probably would have rushed him to an emergency room. In
interviews he has said he was interested with seeing how far he could push himself. When he got down to 121 pounds, which you see in the movie, he considered trying to lose another 20 just for kicks. Bale won a few international awards and was nominated for others, but he didnt even receive a nomination for an Oscar, despite his overwhelming commitment and execution of a physically and emotionally demanding role.