When Cillian Murphy survived on just 'an almond per day' for Oppenheimer. Actor's extreme diet stuns fans

Time of India

a day ago

Cillian Murphy immersed himself in prep for his role in
Christopher Nolan
's flick, Oppenheimer, a great box office hit. Murphy, known for his role in Peaky Blinders, underwent a drastic transformation to portray J Robert Oppenheimer in blockbuster film directed by Christopher Nolan.
Despite having a youthful and slim look, the 49-year-old actor went to great lengths for a massive change for this smash film by shedding quite a lot of weight. Murphy immersed himself to embody the "emaciated" physicist who developed the first atomic bomb as part of the secret Manhattan Project.
Cillian Murphy ate 'a almond per day' for Oppenheimer?
To prepare for the role, Cillian Murphy lost a significant amount of weight, resorting to extreme measures such as eating "an almond a day" to resemble the renowned scientist, according to The Irish Star. Murphy revealed that it took him over five months to get into character, admitting that he intentionally lost weight to give Oppenheimer a "wide-eyed look" indicative of his constant state of hunger.
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"I love acting with my body, and Oppenheimer had a very distinct physicality and silhouette, which I wanted to get right," he shared in a recent interview, reports the Mirror.
He further explained that he had to lose a considerable amount of weight and worked closely with the costume department to achieve Oppenheimer's slim, almost emaciated appearance, sustained on martinis and cigarettes.
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Murphy also worked with professionals to perfect Oppenheimer's "silhouette and expressions" before filming commenced. In an interview with the New York Times, he admitted to testing his limits on how little he could eat but cautioned against following such an extreme diet. The actor didn't disclose the exact amount of weight he shed for the film, but mentioned that the demanding schedule made him less concerned about his diet. Instead, he was "running on crazy energy".
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However, in an interview with GQ, Murphy debunked diet rumours about his diet during the filming of Oppenheimer, stating that he consumed more than just almonds. He said, "his is apocryphal. I think Emily (Blunt) was being very sympathetic to me when she said Cillian only ate one almond a day. It was more than that. I didn't really have room in my brain to be socialising with the rest of the cast and crew at the time, because there was so much work to do, and I was reducing calories and all that stuff. I didn't go out for dinner, but I had more than one almond a day.'
What Emily Brunt said on Cillian Murphy's rigorous diet?
Emily Blunt, his co-star in the movie, also commented on Cillian's drastic transformation and shared details about his rigorous diet. The 40-year-old actress, who portrayed Cillian's wife in Oppenheimer, described his weight loss journey as a "monumental undertaking."
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"He had such a monumental undertaking. And he could only eat, like, an almond every day. He was so emaciated," she revealed during an interview with Extra.
Despite all the hard work, it did pay off for the Irish actor. Oppenheimer led the 2024 Oscar nominations with 13 nods — including a best actor nomination for Murphy, the first one in his lengthy career.