Orlando Bloom has undergone a drastic physical alteration for his film “The Cut.” The British actor who famously appeared in movies like Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lord of the Rings, reportedly lost a whopping 52 pounds for the film.
Directed by Sean Ellis, the film portrays Bloom as a boxer who comes out of retirement to claim a championship title. Following his coach’s instructions, he undergoes an extreme transformation but also faces several obstacles to lose the desired weight before the competition. The 47-year-old actor recently sat down with Variety at the Toronto Film Festival studio to discuss his journey and more.
“The Cut” held its world premiere on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Rather than being a simple boxing movie, “The Cut” dives deep inside the grotesque subgenre of body horror. Some of the scenes are so intense that they terrified the audience, with one of them even passing out.
Bloom mentions that it took him three months to prepare his physique for the film. He reports that he weighed about 185 when he started his weight loss journey. He made do on a strict diet of tuna and cucumber. The whole process was draining, both physically and mentally.
The storyline of the film demanded it to be shot in reverse chronological order. Ellis shot the ending first and the beginning was shot at the very end. That is why Bloom had to achieve the lowest possible weight before shooting started and bulk up while the shooting was in motion. “Over the 25 days that we were shooting, he was putting on the calories,” Ellis shared.
Bloom mentions that he was fascinated with the psychological aspect of it, as he was also sleep-deprived. He found the whole experience rather “exciting” and that “living in that headspace for a while was very challenging.”
Seeing The Cut, Perry “just was freaked out,” Bloom told PEOPLE on Friday, Sept. 6 following the movie’s Toronto International Film Festival premiere the day prior. “She watched it and was like, ‘I need a stiff drink.’”
Bloom, 47, stars in the new Sean Ellis-directed film as an unnamed boxer who must drop a significant amount of weight to compete. In an official synopsis, the character is described as “a retired fighter obsessed with getting back in the ring — even if it costs him his life.”
“I was very hangry,” quipped Bloom of his weight loss. “The last three weeks in London, before we started filming, were just tuna and cucumber.” A nutritionist working on the movie, he said, “had me on a strict regime to tear me down, so that we started the film at my lightest weight. And then I put on weight as we filmed.”
Perry, 39, cried upon seeing the drama premiere, he said. “She was really moved. She knew what it took.” At one point during filming and coming home to his family, Bloom recalled, “I literally thought I was gonna die.”
Bloom's commitment to the role extended beyond the physical transformation. He describes the experience as a deep dive into his character's mental state, where he had to confront the realities of PTSD and the toll it took on his body and mind.
The film's harrowing depiction of the boxer's journey, coupled with Bloom's intense portrayal, has left audiences in awe. “The Cut” is a stark reminder of the lengths actors go to for their craft and the impact their work can have on viewers.
“The Cut,” with a screenplay by Justin Bull and story by Mark Lane, does not yet have a distributor or release date.
