If there's one genre that continues to dominate the filmmaking world, it's comic book movies. With three shared universes currently competing for box office dominance and fan adoration, there's a ton of superhero movies in theaters, and therefore loads of actors in tights and capes. One of these is Josh Brolin, who plays both Thanos in the MCU and Cable in the Deadpool franchise. The latter required Brolin to seriously bulk up, allowing Cable to be a physically imposing presence, and kick Wade Wilson's ass one or two times. At 50 years old he's in killer shape, and Josh Brolin recently revealed the strict diet required to be a comic book badass:
Totally clean: no sugar, no breads, no pastas, no drugs, none of it. Fish, rice, eggs, veggies, water, one [bullet proof coffee] in the morning. It's a different time: our access along with some big picture discipline results in always surprising milestones.
Well, that doesn't sound very fun. While being a movie star and comic book character sounds like any actors's dream, the reality can often be a double edged sword. And while some actors have extremely tight costumes and painful wire work, Brolin had to cut anything fun out of his diet. No wonder Cable was so cranky in Deadpool 2.
Josh Brolin's comments help peel back the curtain of Hollywood magic, and show the hard work that comes with starring in some of this year's biggest movies. Brolin needed some extreme discipline to transform his body into Cable's muscular frame, logging tons of hours at the gym, and also making sure that nothing remotely fattening or full or sugar ended up in his body. It all paid off, because Cable's silver screen debut certainly didn't disappoint.
While speaking to his physical routine, Josh Brolin also spoke to the ways he keps active at home. When the gym isn't available, he finds other ways to stay in shape, and keep his blood flowing. As he told Men's Health,
But even if you can't put in a 2 hour workout of abs, cardio, weights and boxing, it's always nice to remind your body what kind of shape you want to stay in. 30 minutes today of random exercises: thrusters, push ups, lunges, burpees, straight bar rows, deadlift. Not too heavy but I feel it.
Josh Brolin isn't the only actor to get into shape for a comic book role, although he may be one of the oldest actors to bulk up so seriously. Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt lost a ton of weight before becoming an action star, and often cites simply being active everyday and changing his diet as the key to the transformation.
You can watch Josh Brolin's jacked physique in action with Deadpool 2, which is available digitally now, and for home purchase on August 21st. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movie.
