7 Actors Who Drastically Transformed Their Bodies For Forgettable Movies

When you’re listing method actors it’s unlikely that Mark Wahlberg would even cross your mind. Known mainly for his success in puerile comedies as well as passable performances in a range of dramatic features, you pretty much know what you’re getting from Marky Mark.

The Gambler doesn’t stray too far from his wheelhouse. A remake of the 1974 James Toback classic, this version waters down the plot until it's a cut and paste thriller about casinos and loan sharks where the hugely questionable moral of the story is that the only way to successfully quit gambling is to keep gambling until you win or you’ve had enough.

Despite some able supporting performances from Michael Kenneth Williams as a shifty gangster and Jessica Lange as Wahlberg’s mother, the end result is something that’s only worth watching if you’re flicking through channels on a slow night.

This is what makes his decision to drop 60lbs for such a bland movie all the more inexplicable. He plays a literature professor (yes, seriously) harbouring an unhealthy love of casinos and a habit of being in debt to the wrong people. Sure, that sounds stressful enough to warrant dropping a few pounds but almost four and a half stone?

It didn’t add anything to the role. You’re still getting that same Wahlberg performance just with slightly baggier clothes.