For superhero actors, the pressures to remain buff like Captain America, chiseled like Thor, and massive like The Hulk can sometimes be overwhelming. In order to secure and keep starring in their franchises, they have to continue to look the part, which is well and beyond what any average actor looks like daily. While a grueling workout regime and strict diet will give them results, they are sometimes not fast enough. This means they sometimes turn to other alternatives to keeping in super shape. We’re talking about steroids.
The most commonly used steroids are HGH (Human Growth Hormone), Peptides (amino acid chains less than 50, which would otherwise be a protein), and illegal anabolic steroids (synthetic hormones that promote the growth of testosterone). All steroids are designed to bolster testosterone levels, because testosterone promotes muscle growth, so taken steadily actors will gradually increase muscle mass. Steroids have some pretty harsh side effects including increased blood pressure, thinning bones, and damage to the heart, liver, and kidneys. Recently, legal steroids such as Dianabol (which increases natural protein synthesis and creates an active anabolic environment), as well as Anadrole (which increases oxygen transportation) have come on the market so that actors will no longer take chances with their health and safety.
17 NEVER USED: HENRY CAVILL
When previous actors have donned the red cape and underpants, there was never a precedent for being buff. Since Superman was the strongest man in the world from the power of Earth’s Sun, he didn’t necessarily need to have rippling pectorals. Hence, Christopher Reeve and Brandon Routh had a slim, athletic physique but nothing remotely resembling what Henry Cavill brought to the costume.
Knowing the responsibilities of playing the Man of Steel, Cavill underwent a grueling workout regime when he was cast in the role. Already in great shape from playing the son of a god in The Immortals, he nevertheless trained with Mark Twight for six months before filming began so that he would be in the best shape possible. He was incredibly proud of the body he built naturally, especially since he didn’t want the suit to need any padding.
16 ALLEGEDLY USED: SYLVESTER STALLONE
Known for his huge hits in the ‘80s like Rocky and Judge Dredd, Sly Stallone has been known to juice for a long time. Like Arnold Schwarzenegger, he was a bodybuilder before he became a Hollywood action star, and in those days was known to use anabolic steroids. As he inevitably aged, he took HGH as a way to maintain his bulk and size. He was stopped re-entering the States in 2007 with 40 vials of Chinese HGH called Jintropin. He was found guilty of possession even with a prescription because it was illegal in the US.
For a man approaching 70, Sly is still more fit than men a quarter of his age. Recently, he posted to his social media accounts a video of himself doing pull-ups with a 100-pound weight hanging from his weight belt. Check out his great cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy 2!
15 NEVER USED: JASON MOMOA
Jason Momoa is usually selected to play the roles that a young, strapping Schwarzenegger might have been approached for such as barbarians, medieval fantasy barbarians, and fish kings -- you know, his bread and butter of sweet movie roles. Though he may not have started like the Austrian Oak building his bulk from boyhood, he has spent the last several years gaining muscle mass for a variety of very physically demanding roles.
2011 was a big year for Jason Momoa. It saw him play the titular lead in the remake of Conan the Barbarian, and it saw him play Khal Drogo on Game of Thrones, the role that unquestionably put him on the map (and in our hearts). Both of these roles required him to be shirtless 99% of the time, which gets no complaints.
14 NEVER USED: CHRIS PRATT
Since appearing on the popular series Parks and Rec, Chris Pratt has gone from being known for his goofy sense of humor, to being known for his rugged brawn. When he was cast in Zero Dark Thirty, he had to shed quite a bit of weight to believably play a deployed soldier in the midst of a warzone.
Since then, Pratt has appeared as the buff lead in Jurassic World and also Guardians of the Galaxy and its sequel. He’s been very vocal about the fact that he bulked up completely naturally, and had to be deprived of a lot of his favorite foods. As is often the case with stars who transform so quickly, he was accused of using steroids, but maintains that he wouldn’t punish himself so much with Phil Goglia’s workout routine and agonizing diet if he planned to take the easy way out.
13 ALLEGEDLY USED: DWAYNE JOHNSON
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is about to join the ranks of actors turned superheroes when he finally appears on the big screen as the villain Black Adam in Shazam (possibly/hopefully). Audiences everywhere have long thought Johnson should have suited up long ago, given that his physique is already super-sized. The Rock has been known for his buff bod for over 20 years now, first to fans of WWE, and then to fans of The Mummy franchise in The Mummy Returns and The Scorpion King.
How does he continue to remain so jacked? These days, he’s all about eating clean and working out hard beginning at 4AM every day in his personal home gym. But back before his days playing college football in Florida, he admits to dabbling with steroids.
12 NEVER USED: CHRIS HEMSWORTH
No mystical Norse artifact helped beef up Chris Hemsworth into a god-like state. The former surfer turned film star simply committed himself to a grueling workout regime that involved heavy strength training, a protein-packed diet, and lots of interval training moves. He had a solid frame to work with, so building muscle wasn’t a problem, and he was fortunate enough to have the time it takes to do so naturally.
Since signing on to play Thor in the Avengers and Thor films, he’s done extreme body transformations in the other direction, continuing to show a commitment to the roles he plays. When he chased the fictitious whale Moby Dick in Into the Sea, he dropped 20 pounds to look emaciated when his ship’s supplies ran out. Gaining or losing a lot of muscle quickly is hard on the body, so in some ways, it’s good the Thor trilogy is over.
11 ALLEGEDLY USED: DOLPH LUNDGREN
Before Jon Bernthal’s impressive turn as Frank Castle, and Thomas Jane’s admirable attempt before him, Dolph Lundgren was The Punisher. To this day, his appearance in one of the earliest superhero movies to start the genre’s resurgence saw him commit some of the most on-screen kills of all time, surpassed perhaps only by Schwarzenegger in Commando (for those keeping track at home, that’s 81).
The Punisher in 1989 was a truly brutal film, and it established it’s anti-hero as a true embodiment of his kind. Lundgren, who became known to American audiences prominently in Rocky IV going up against Sly Stallone, had used steroids when he was a younger man. At 6’5” and 250 pounds, they only served to give an edge to a man who was already as large as Denmark, and he didn’t like the “softness” his muscle acquired on them, so he stopped.
10 NEVER USED: CHRIS EVANS
The winning combination of moral integrity and physical prowess made Chris Evans a perfect fit to embody Captain America, but it wasn’t without some significant work on his part. Known for a combination of romantic comedies and the occasional indie flick, Chris Evans made his jump into a super-suit by playing Johnny Storm in The Fantastic Four. To do so, he had to get in good enough shape to wear Spandex with confidence, but because the highlight of his superpowers was becoming The Human Torch, size didn’t matter as much.
To authentically portray a puny cadet turned into a Super Soldier, he had to significantly alter his physique. He had a solid platform of lean muscle mass and density, but to make the transformation as incredible as it was, he had to undergo an intense weight lifting regime for six months before Captain America: The First Avenger started shooting.
9 ALLEGEDLY USED: DAVID HASSELHOFF
Before Samuel L. Jackson owned the role of Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Hoff once put on the eyepatch and led his agents into battle against all those that opposed justice. Though by today’s standards his body running along the beach in Baywatch might not seem like the kind fueled by steroids, but Hasselhoff succumbed to the pressures of looking good half naked just like every other celebrity.
A Los Angeles doctor went on the record for admitting to selling steroids to a large list of celebrities and famous athletes in the early ‘90s. Hasselhoff was included on that list, but he himself doesn’t speak publicly about it, though he has been quite vocal about his other substance abuse issues.
8 NEVER USED: BEN AFFLECK
When the casting was announced for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, fans didn’t take kindly to the fact that Ben Affleck would be the latest actor to don the Caped Crusader’s cowl. In order to win them over, he would have to not only have the charisma of fan favorite Christian Bale before him, but also have the powerful build. Especially since this version of Batman would be based on Frank Miller’s Dark Knight series in the ‘80s in which Batman was middle-aged. He looked like a tank and had the grim morality to match.
In order to get him to the juggernaut size he needed, Walter Norton Jr. from the Institute of Performance and Fitness had him doing training with nothing short of 60 extra pounds strapped to him at all times. It worked, and he blew audiences away with his version of the Dark Knight.
7 NEVER USED: CHRISTIAN BALE
Christian Bale has become known for his extreme physical transformations. In The Machinist, he whittled himself down to 120 pounds, whereas for American Hustle he gained an extra 60 pounds of fat. But to play Batman in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy, he had to endure the most rigorous transformation of his acting career, and keep it up every time a new film was shot.
When Bale went from his emaciated look in The Machinist to the chiseled look of Batman, fans questioned just how he had been able to pull it off. By working out daily, having a strict diet intended to help him pack on muscle, and being able to rely on muscle memory, he became a Batman that would be difficult to surpass.
6 ALLEGEDLY USED: JEEP SWENSON
As terrible as the Joel Schumacher Batman films were, they were sometimes the only reason fans ever got to see the large variety of Batman’s Rogue Gallery of villains on the big screen. In Batman and Robin, audiences go to finally see Bane come to life through the hulk-like Jeep Swenson, a stuntman and former professional wrestler who weighed a whopping 400 pounds!
According to his widow, he abused steroids in the extreme, actions which ultimately led to his massive and tragic heart attack at just 38. His lungs failed, his liver failed, and finally his heart failed, all because he felt pressured to maintain his 65-inch chest measurements to land roles. The saddest part is that at the end, from his hospital bed, he wanted to “just be free” of all the weight and muscle and be “a small man again”.
5 NEVER USED: ZOE SALDANA
The feisty Zoe Saldana, known for her sci-fi action roles in Avatar and Guardians of the Galaxy, looks like a lean statue chiseled from marble. Though she may not be the biggest or most buff of her superhero peers, the presence and her musculature can’t be overlooked. Her commanding presence combined with her defined physique and unique look set her apart from other super heroines.
Rumors once surfaced that, due to an autoimmune disease, she was taking HGH to maintain her health. She debunked these theories, claiming that a particular clean diet and workout routine helped her stay super fit. Her training for films has to take her health into consideration, with workout routines modified to include pilates and yoga rather than the typical weight and cardio training.
4 ALLEGEDLY USED: LOU FERRIGNO
For many superhero fans of the genre before it reached the heights of its production today, Lou Ferrigno was one of the first actors to actually look like the superhero he was portraying. A bodybuilder from the days of Pumping Iron, who regularly competed against Arnold Schwarzenegger, he played The Hulk on the television series of the same name. At 6’5” and almost 300 pounds, he truly was Hulk-sized.
In the ‘70s and ‘80s, when Ferrigno was at the height of competing in bodybuilding events like Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia, there were a lot of great bodybuilders. There were also not regulations against steroid use. Though he hasn't admitted to it himself, his trainer Dan Lurie has stated he was on them.
3 NEVER USED: RYAN REYNOLDS
Known for such classic comedies as Van Wylder and Waiting, it was odd when Ryan Reynolds entered the superhero genre. It began when he played Hal Jordan in The Green Lantern, which was largely CGI and required very little of him in regards to bulking up, especially since most of that could be done in post production.
The natural fit arrived when he finally got his passion project Deadpool made, in which he was perfect for the titular role. With his natural gift of gab, charming wit, and leading man looks, there was no one better. While he had implemented a strong workout regimen before when he appeared in Blade Trinity, he took training for Deadpool to a whole new level and even used a feud with Hugh Jackman as fuel to pump hard.
2 NEVER USED: HUGH JACKMAN
When you’ve had to remain continuously jacked for 15 years in order to play the same superhero known for being jacked, it’s only natural that the haters will assume you’re juicing. Hugh Jackman, famously known for playing Wolverine in the X-Men films as well as the solo Wolverine franchise, has had to spending a large majority of his acting career in the gym.
With the help of trainer David Kingsbury, who felt that Jackman had a great foundation of lean muscle, he carefully molded the Wolverine look that he’s been able to maintain in all his films. With a combination of daily weight lifting workouts (twice a day during filming), cardio, and a high protein diet, he was able to play Wolverine until at 48 he retracted his claws for good in the critically acclaimed Logan.
1 ALLEGEDLY USED: ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER
It’s no secret that Arnold Schwarzenegger, multiple Mr. Olympia and Mr. Universe winner, has taken steroids. He has been candid about his abuse of performance enhancing substances in numerous interviews, and attributes it to the era in which he was bodybuilding when it wasn’t regulated as well as it should have been. In those days, cycling steroids was incredibly hard on your kidneys and liver, which could lead to fatal health complications later in life. He stopped taking steroids in the late ‘80s, and was clean by the time he played Mr. Freeze in Batman and Robin.
These days, Arnold promotes a healthy lifestyle involving regular exercise (he warns of the dangers of steroid abuse) and environmentally conscious living. He even modified all of his Hummers to be electric and became a vegetarian. He still has his occasional stogie though!