Embodying one of the comic book world’s most powerful heroes and kicking off a new cinematic universe requires quite the appetite.
So much so that Superman’s Rachel Brosnahan admitted when she and costar David Corenswet—the film’s Lois Lane and Clark Kent—sat down for a pre-production breakfast, she “couldn’t believe” the sheer “volume of food” that was placed in front of her onscreen counterpart.
“I feel like I’ve heard people say they never wanted to eat again after bulking for something like this and I really understood it,” she told E! News while sitting down for an exclusive interview alongside Corenswet and fellow costar Nicholas Hoult ahead of the movie’s July 11 debut. “You had, like, four plates of eggs.”
The visual reminded Hoult—who director James Gunn tapped to play signature Man of Steel foe Lex Luthor—of another pop culture villain.
Quipped Hoult, “Okay, Gaston.”
As it turns out, there is, in fact, someone as burly and brawny as the self-absorbed Beauty and the Beast brute.
And while Corenswet wasn’t exactly downing four dozen eggs, he admitted he would definitely get some “looks” when he’d indulge in his protein-heavy fare.
As he put it, “It’s much easier to cook eight eggs than it is to order eight eggs in a restaurant.” And, yet, the 32-year-old called his immense diet and workout prep “nothing remarkable.”
“I did a very straightforward regimen of lifting heavy things and eating a lot of calories,” he said. “And sleeping as much as I could.”
Two years ago, when Gunn was installed as DC Comics’ co-CEO, alongside Peter Safran, he hinted at his blueprint for the DC Universe, with a Superman film slated to formally introduce a shared story canon across television and film.
Following Corenset’s casting as Kal-El, the actor—whose previous credits included roles onRyan Murphy shows The Politician and Hollywood, plus a spot in Twisters’ ensemble of storm-chasers—got to work on ingesting the body fuel needed to carry a Krypton-sized franchise on his back.
“Protein with every meal. Five times a day. 250 grams of protein a day,” he detailed. “And then, enough carbs and fats along with that to gain weight at about the quickest pace that it’s reasonable to gain, which is about two pounds a week. And I kept that up for four months. And topped out at 238 pounds.”
Corenswet jokingly added, “And then, collapsed in a heap and was never heard from again.”
Speaking with GQ, Corenswet’s personal trainer, Paolo Mascitti—handpicked by Gunn, after he watched the LA-based muscles expert transform The Suicide Squad‘s Flula Borg—broke down the bullet points of their multi-prong approach to a singularly iconic physique.
“We focus on moments like presses, pull ups, pull downs, rows—all the big ones,” Mascitti said. “We switched a little bit after a while, but kept the focus on progressive overload to encourage muscle growth, keeping track of reps and weight and trying to advance each week.”
Mascitti and Superman‘s Instagram accounts have posted highlights of a sweat-soaked Corenswet following his plan, an approach as practical and old-fashioned as Metropolis’ out-of-this-world hero.
“This is just what works,” Mascitti said. “A lot of trainers online are looking for the next best thing, but it’s not about showy moves, it’s about mastering the exercise and focusing on things like full range of motion, mastering the negative, stretching, and trying to progress in weight and reps.”
Along with this straightforward approach, Corenswet suited up with a measured mindset behind the scenes that helped him add some 40 pounds of muscle.
“I would say I didn’t feel pressure, but not because I felt like I had it in the bag by any means. I just felt that I had a wonderful responsibility,” he explained to E! News’ Will Marfuggi at the July 7 premiere in L.A. “The kind of responsibility that any actor hopes to have, which is to play a great character. To work on a great and challenging script with a great director, who ended up challenging me and pushing me to be the best that I could be.”
He’s hardly the first star to attempt superhuman feats of strength. Check out what other celebrities have shared about their impressive body transformations.
Channing Tatum
The Magic Mike star’s weight has fluctuated over the years, especially in 2024, as he got into character for two back-to-back movie roles.
He said on Instagram in March 2025 that he currently weighed 205 pounds—up from the 172 pounds he weighed for Roofman (pictured, right). Months before beginning production on that 2024 film, he shot the movie Josephine (pictured, left) and weighed 235 pounds for his role.
Timothée Chalamet
For his Oscar-nominated role as musician Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown, the Dune actor learned how to sing and play guitar.
“I also put on 20 pounds,” he said during a January 2025 episode NPR’s All Things Considered podcast, “because, believe it or not, I was thinner than the guy.”
Cillian Murphy
To play scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer in Christopher Nolan‘s Oppenheimer, the Irish actor “had to lose quite a bit of weight,” he shared. “He was very slim, almost emaciated, existed on martinis and cigarettes.” His diet? According to costar Emily Blunt, “He had such a monumental undertaking.And he could only eat, like, an almond every day.”
Joaquin Phoenix
For his Joker role, the Oscar winner opened up about his 52-pound weight loss, telling the Associated Press, “Once you reach the target weight, everything changes. Like so much of what’s difficult is waking up every day and being obsessed over like 0.3 pounds. Right? And you really develop like a disorder.”
J.K. Simmons
The Spider-Man alum shocked fans when he debuted his bulging biceps, which were displayed in Justice League.
Jake Gyllenhaal
“I’d say my mother was worried,” he previously told E! News after losing 30 pounds for Nightcrawler. “I would say she just wanted me to be careful. But she also knew and knows how seriously I take what I do and she respects that.”
Orlando Bloom
The Pirates of the Caribbean alum detailed the physical and emotional toll of losing 52 pounds for his boxing movie The Cut.
“I was exhausted mentally, physically. I was hangry,” he said on This Morning. “I was a horrible person to be around. The paranoia, the intrusive thoughts.”
“I wouldn’t recommend doing it at home, by the way,” he continued. “It was definitely not something to take lightly.”
Michael B. Jordan
The Black Panther star gained nearly 30 pounds of muscle to transform into a rookie-turned-professional boxer in Creed.
Jared Leto
The actor and musician nabbed an Oscar for his riveting role in The Dallas Buyers Club. He lost 40 pounds for the role.
Chris Messina
The Mindy Project alum had to gain 40 pounds for his role in Live by Night.
Renée Zellweger
The Bridget Jones’s Diary actress gained weight to portray the lovable character in the franchise’s first and second films.
Matthew McConaughey
The Magic Mike hunk dropped 30 pounds to star in The Dallas Buyer’s Club—which centered on the real-life story about a man dying from AIDS in the 1980s who treated himself with alternative remedies he smuggled into the United States from Mexico.
Rooney Mara
The actress looked lean and strong for her starring role in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.
Anne Hathaway
The Les Misérables star took home an Oscar for her role in the musical.
Christian Bale
He’s no stranger to morphing for movie roles. In 2004, he lost more than 60 pounds for his role in The Machinist, and he did it again for the film The Fighter, opposite Mark Wahlberg. He also gained 40 pounds for American Hustle—and lost 70 pounds for Ford v Ferrari.
Jake Gyllenhaal (Again)
The actor looked more like a god than a prince for his role in 2010’s Prince of Persia. Gyllenhaal said he studied Parkour, the French art of street running, in order to bulk up for the film.
Tom Hanks
“All it is is time and discipline,” the Oscar winner told Time magazine of his role in 2000’s Cast Away, for which he lost over 50 pounds to play a man stranded on an uninhabited island.
50 Cent
The ripped rapper shocked fans with a photo of himself looking slender. He reportedly went from 214 to 160 pounds in just nine weeks to play a football player diagnosed with cancer in Things Fall Apart.
Robert De Niro
Shaping up for movie roles is nothing new. The legendary actor earned an Oscar nom for his role as terrifying tattooed rapist Max Cady in the 1991 thriller Cape Fear.
Christian Bale (Again)
In order to portray former Vice President Dick Cheney in the 2018 biopic Vice, the star sported a fuller figure.
