Christian Bale suffered a herniated disc after weight gain for film role

Christian Bale has been praised in the past for drastically changing his appearance to line up with his movie roles.

But that’s not to say changing his body for the purposes of a film comes without its own risks, as The Dark Knight actor has sustained injuries as a result of his physical transformations. Check out how he looked in American Hustle here:

The 48-year-old previously suffered from a herniated disk after gaining weight for his role in the 2014 American Hustle.

Bale, who was around 39 years old at the time, gained 19kg for his role as the con artist Irving Rosenfeld in the movie.

However, director David O Russell admitted warning the actor to stop trying to transform himself for the role after he became injured.

Russell told USA Today in 2013: "At one point I said, ‘Enough already!’

REUTERS / Alamy Stock Photo

“He lost three inches of height and even got a herniated disc. He's a quiet, sweet, smart person with endless passion. Women find him sexy in this movie, but it's all in the eyes."

Bale also admitted that as he’s growing older, he’s finding that the constant yo-yo weight differences for movie roles have taken a toll on his body.

He told the publication: “I think I'm certainly getting older. I thought I was going to lose the weight I gained for American Hustle. I said, two months, flat, that'll do it.

“I was 185[lbs] [83 kg] and I went up to 228[lbs] [103kg] for it. And I'm still working that off!

“It's almost six months later. Now I know that when I was in my early 20s it would have been two months and that's it."

Maximum Film / Alamy Stock Photo

Bale previously opened up about his drastic weight loss and differences in his sleep schedule for his role in The Machinist.

In the 2004 psychological thriller directed by Brad Anderson, Bale altered his appearance radically to play the role of Trevor Reznik - a machine tool tradesperson who has been struggling with severe insomnia for over a year, leading him to experience paranoia and delusions.

Even director Brad Anderson was 'stunned' at just how much weight the actor ended up losing for the role.

Bale explained: "I'd come off the back of making some films I'd been less than satisfied with and just really wanted something where I could become immersed and obsessed with it."

If you've been affected by any of the issues in this article and would like to speak with someone in confidence, call the BEAT Eating Disorders helpline on 0808 801 0677. Helplines are open 365 days a year from 9am–8pm during the week, and 4pm–8pm on weekends and bank holidays. Alternatively, you can try the one-to-one webchat.