Do you know how much weight did Joaquin Phoenix lose for Joker? No worries, read on to know how he transformed his body to fit into the character of the Joker.
The movie, Joker, was a massive success creating box office records last year as the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time.
Joaquin Phoenix, the 44-year-old method actor, gained all applauds for his outstanding performance in the movie.
The most astonishing fact here is his physique displayed in the movie.
The transformation of the actor is awe-inspiring. The question arises here that how much weight did Joaquin lose for Joker.
For more weight loss inspiration you can also check our article about Adele weight loss and her efforts she did to slash some pounds after her divorce.
How Much Weight did Joaquin Phoenix Lose for Joker Movie?
The brilliant actor lost a shocking 52 pounds to play this character in Joker.
Though he was in a restrictive diet supervised by a doctor, he transformed himself in just four months.
He won multiple awards for Joker including the Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Drama. The best of all was The Academy Awards for Best Actor for his portrayal as Arthur Fleck.
To play the role of an iconic antihero, Joaquin had to take several challenges.
Weight loss was one of them to look hungry and unhealthy in the movie.
He spoke in the late-night show Jimmy Kimmel live about what it felt like to lose that much weight in that short period.
“In the beginning, you’re exhausted,” Phoenix said.
You look at a flight of stairs and it takes like 30 seconds. You have to talk yourself into it and say, ‘I can do this; I know I can do this.
Then as he was progressing towards the final target, he started feeling ‘energized and excited’.
I felt like I could move my body in ways that I hadn’t been able to before. And I think that really lent itself to some of the physical movement that started to emerge as an important part of the character.
– he told the AP.
‘The Joker Diet’: An Extreme Diet
A few months before the shooting of the movie started, Joaquin had to start this extreme diet routine.
The character holds visual expectations, for which he dropped from 180 pounds to 128 pounds in a short span of four months.
His crash diet involves a huge starving for calories.
Phoenix had to face some hurdles of trying to lose a drastic amount of weight at the age of 44. At this age, the male metabolism rate slows down making the process even harder.
He was under the supervision of a famous nutritionist. His caloric intake was reduced to a few hundred calories a day.
Joaquin is already a vegan so his diet would not have meat or dairy products. There is no clear indication of any exercises for his weight reduction process. As per his interview, he relied upon his restricted diet to drop pounds.
While the famous ’apple a day’ rumor came out in the media, Joaquin also added to that. He told he had lettuce, steamed asparagus or green beans, with vinegar. A host of vitamin and mineral supplements were also included to sustain the body’s requirements.
He abstained from social interactions and gatherings to maintain his diet. For which, he had faced loneliness and isolation. While he was in his ‘Joker Diet’, he used to spend time with his director Todd Phillips.
He even got obsessed and kept track of his weight reduction by checking it several times a day.
Is it Safe to try Joker Diet?
Now that you already know that how much weight did Joaquin lose to play the Joker, you may think of trying it.
Joaquin Phoenix had said before that trying these kinds of a strict diet can impact on your physical and mental health drastically.
Fatigue, food cravings, eating disorders, fogginess of thought, and difficulty in concentrating are some of the common issues that he had suffered, even though being under medical supervision.
Several nutritionists have stated that this kind of extreme dieting can be unhealthy causing psychological problems. A lot of professional motivation is required to sustain this.
A balanced diet with a correct pace for weight reduction is recommended to follow. In a short span, losing too much weight can be unsafe for your body.
