Those words sound pretty odd considering Tom Hardy has built a career playing dark, incredibly strong, sturdy characters. Be it Tommy Conlon from Warrior (2011) or Bane of The Dark Knight Rises (2012), his screen presence and the amount of brawn he flexed kept audiences mesmerized, excited and entertained for months! However, these commercial roles only scratch the surface when it comes to his acting talent. Here are a few more things you might not know about him.

Tom Hardy puts his full weight into his actions.

Hardy isn’t as tall as he might appear on screen. At 5’9”, his usual weight is around 70kg, barely exceeding 80-85kg for some of his heaviest on-screen characters like Bronson , Tommy Conlon and Bane . However, he articulates much more with his body than his face. By taking advantage of camera angles and adjusting his natural movement to make her look like a person who appears a lot heavier than herself. He exudes the confidence that most men think natural movement comes with bigger muscles.

When people wonder about his lack of height, Tom explains:

You can achieve anything you set your mind to

In fact, while Hardy was considering a role in Warriors , Tom’s former trainer, Patrick Monroe, revealed that not only had he never thrown a punch in his life before, but several trainers who have tested his physical fitness have been convinced he doesn’t have what it takes to establish himself as a credible, lousy MMA fighter.

After an intense two months of 8 hours a day work; That included two hours of boxing, two hours of muay thai, two hours of fight choreography, and two hours of weightlifting and living chicken, broccoli, and protein shakes. Tom Hardy proved the naysayers wrong! The video below gives a glimpse of his physical transformation.

Dominate mental battles first!

The physical changes Tom is going through are nothing compared to the mental change he has wrought over the years and doesn’t hesitate to share all of his life lessons with every chance he gets.

In einem Interview mit der Zeitschrift Men’s Health, Hardyräumt ein, dass Potenzial und Talent Sie nicht sehr weit bringen werden, wenn Sie nicht hart arbeiten und nicht diszipliniert genug sind, um Ihren Verpflichtungen nachzukommen. Als Einzelkind war Hardy widerspenstig und ziellos. Tom wurde zweimal von der Schule verwiesen und geriet als Teenager in schlechte Gesellschaft. Das Drama kanalisierte seine ruhelose Energie konstruktiv, aber Anfang der zwanziger Jahre trieb der Glamour und Ruhm der Schauspielbranche seine Party außer Kontrolle und er stellte fest, dass er Drogen und Alkohol missbrauchte. So sehr Hardy versuchte vorzutäuschen, dass er sein Leben zusammen hatte, begann seine Arbeit zu leiden.

Frequent power outages in unknown locations eventually served as a wake-up call for Tom to join a rehab facility. He has been sober since 2003.

Push your limits further

As much as people are quickly releasing physical transformations to steroids, high-quality supplements, and other privileges that movie stars have access to, radical changes to your body still require a great deal of hard work and discipline. The key to Hardy’s ability to transform into a new, believable character with each new project is focus and, of course, passion for his work. He never picks up again or attempts to recreate the style and demeanor of any of his previous film characters, and tends to change his accent and body language with each new film role, using real-life people for reference.

For example, in the film Locke , Tom speaks with a Welsh accent, has an American accent in Warrior , an Australian accent in Mad Max , and a Russian accent in Charles 44 !

Patrick Monroe, former coach, revealed to a men’s magazine that

Staying true to yourself is empowering

Having an authentic sense of self again and again makes life a more enjoyable experience that comes with a strong sense of self-assurance. Tom is comfortable with his crooked teeth, doesn’t need to hire a PR team to improve his social image, and gets great projects despite the many tattoos on his body. His reputation for being difficult doesn’t bother him either as he will do whatever it takes to produce a great performance. In the meantime, he makes sure his fame doesn’t rob him of any small or big experiences in life, whether it’s spending time with his son or exploring new places as he travels the world.