MNN - Mother Nature Network

You've likely heard about the dramatic crash diet that actress Anne Hathaway embraced for her role of Fantine in "Les Miserables," but it turns out that her co-star Hugh Jackman went through a similarly punishing experience. 

 

Both stars received nominations today for their phenomenal work in the film — with Hathaway nearly a lock for Best Supporting Actress while Jackman will likely lose out to Daniel Day Lewis in the Best Actor arena. 

 

The 44-year-old nevertheless is likely thrilled to receive his first nod from the Academy, especially after all the hard work that went into preparing for the much-beloved role. 

 

"Weirdly, this was almost more physical in a way than an 'X-Men' movie!" Jackman told Vulture. "I was spending even longer in the gym — like three hours in the gym — because I needed to be as emaciated as possible, but still keep some muscle on for Jean Valjean."

 

Jackman also altered his diet, dropping dairy and even breaking his beloved coffee habit to help maintain the booming voice of Valjean.

 

"He's actually written as an ox of a man, so I had to eat seven times a day with no carbohydrates, but then you had the exercise. I'd wake up and do 45 minutes of card on an empty stomach, eat something, go to the gym, do a vocal warm-up, and then after lunch I'd go back to the gym again. Otherwise, I'd just become skin and bones."

 

Jackman's demanding physique on "Les Miserables" also prepared him for "The Wolverine," which was filmed immediately afterwards. 

 

"It was brutal getting there," he told Jeff Probst. "And by the way, I asked the company if they could just ... you're spending millions on special effects, just help me out. I want to eat pizza and drink beer. And they said no. For that kind of body, I had to go up in weight, big, lift big and heavy, then strip down.”

 

The actor is thankful that both demanding roles are now behind him, saying just before the end of 2012 that he's now "eating whatever he wants." 

 

Check out a video of Jackman from his Academy Award-nominated role in "Les Miserables" below: