9 Completely Pointless Preparations By Method Actors

9. Ryan Gosling Gained 60 Pounds For A Part He Didn't Get

When it comes to casting, Hollywood history is full of intriguing examples of what could've been. Take the part of Sgt. Elias in Platoon, for one, a role that went to Willem Dafoe even though a young Viggo Mortensen had already spent a year conducting research for it. Mortensen's case is a rare one, but it does happen, and he was potentially outdone by Ryan Gosling back in 2007, when he was spending his time preparing for his biggest gig up to that point: Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones. It would have seen Gosling graduate from indies and small-scale projects to the Hollywood big leagues, so naturally the actor was ready to impress. In order to convincingly play The Lovely Bones's Jack Salmon, Gosling grew a thick beard and ate himself 60 pounds overweight (his regularly drinking melted Haagen Dazs no doubt helped), something he hadn't discussed with producers or Jackson beforehand. Then Gosling was fired and replaced by Mark Wahlberg days before shooting began, leaving him, in his own words, "fat and unemployed".