5 Crazy Ways Tom Hardy Got Into Character For Famous Roles

5. He Bit A Crew Member On The Head - Oliver Twist

One of Tom Hardy's earliest - and perhaps lesser-known - roles was that of villain Bill Sikes in a 2007 BBC TV adaptation of Charles Dickens' famous novel, Oliver Twist. Sikes is a renowned madman, of course, and one of Dickens most detestable characters - an alcoholic, wife-beater and general piece of work who lacks both empathy and morality. When he took to the set as Sikes, then, Hardy decided it was appropriate to stay inside the character's head even when they weren't shooting, and so he continued to act like Sikes somewhat - channelling his feverish energy, as it were. Unfortunately, this decision - according to Hardy himself - resorted in a minor incident of the violent kind:
"I was having a laugh with one of the crew, wrestling him, then I bit him on the head as a bit of a joke. It was just me keeping the character ticking over but the team did say, 'Tom, can you calm down?'"
You read that right: the actor ended up channelling Sikes to such a degree that it resulted in one of the crew members being attacked with Hardy's teeth. Only this guy, right?
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Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.