Part of the job as an actor is to become the character you’re playing. In the case of most actors, they go to great lengths just to fully embrace the character they’re playing. In order to convincingly play a certain character, actors usually lose weight or change the color of their hairs. But for the actors included on this list, those are just part of the (literal) transformation.

Jared Leto

Jared Leto may be best known to DC fans as the Joker, but that’s not the first time Leto embraced his character. For his role as John Lennon’s murderer, Mark David Chapman, Leto gained almost 70 pounds so he could accurately portray his character. It was his role as transgender Rayon in Dallas Buyers Club that gave him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Robert Downey Jr.

Downey Jr. is best known for playing Iron Man in MCU, but before he suited up for the role, he starred in Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder. In the film he plays an Australian and five-time Academy Award winner Kirk Lazarus. In order for RDJ’s character to look believable, his character had a controversial surgery to make his skin that of a black man. Talk about dedication!

Rooney Mara

Before landing the role of Lisbeth Salander, Mara had a slew of roles in films like The Social Network and A Nightmare on Elm Street. It was her spiked hair, tattoo-filled character that catapulted her to mainstream success.

Christian Bale

Everyone’s favorite Batman hasn’t always been buff and muscular. Prior to his portrayal of Bruce Wayne, Bale played a machinist in, well, The Machinist. Bale had to lose 62 pounds because of a typo in the script. A freaking typo! He went on and gained 100 pounds weeks after to play Batman.

Marlon Brando

The Godfather was recently named as the greatest movie of all time from a poll created by Empire magazine. And who would disagree? Brando’s acting in the movie was so good that he won an Academy Award for it. Since Brando was only 46 when he played the role, heavy makeup was needed in order for him to portray the ruthless mafia boss.

Mariah Carey

We all know that the word “diva” is synonymous to Mariah Carey, but it’s a totally different MC that we saw in Precious. For her role as a social worker, Carey had to “deglamorize” herself. Carrey sans makeup? What even?!

Johnny Depp

With a wide range of characters he has played over the years, Johnny Depp is the perfect example of method actors in Hollywood. Through his friendship with Tim Burton, Depp was able to play roles such as Edward Scissorhands and Willy Wonka. Depp is arguably best known as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.

Charlize Theron

It’s not every day you see Charlize Theron gaining 30 pounds, with shaved eyebrows and wearing prosthetic teeth, but that’s exactly what she did in the acclaimed film Monster wherein she played a real life serial killer. For her performance in the film she received an Academy Award for Best Actress (future actresses take note.)

What’s the most amazing transformation for you? Share with us your thoughts below!