10 Stars Who Went Ugly For A Role

1. Nicole Kidman – The Hours

The nose. That's what you remember about Nicole Kidman in The Hours, isn't it? Heck, that's probably what you remember about The Hours in general. So the usually enchanting and ever alluring Australian actress donned a prosthetic nose in an attempt to look like Virginia Woolf, whose nose was rather distinct, yes, though it actually looked okay on her. On Kidman, it looked somewhat ridiculous, though, and arguably served to make the beautiful actress more ugly than Woolf actually was in real life. If that sounds confusing, it's because it totally is.

2. Ryan Gosling – Blue Valentine

You know what's weird? Back before he was the subject of endless female fantasies (thanks to roles in movies like Drive and Crazy, Stupid, Love), hottie Ryan Gosling wasn't considered to be a particularly attractive actor. Like, at all. In fact, browse through his back catalogue and you'll find a guy who was actually kind of odd-looking, scruffy and podgy in all his movies the sort of person you'd be freaked out to find staring at you late at night at the bus stop. It's only thanks to fairly recent "broody" turns that he's become something of a sex symbol.

3. Brad Pitt – Twelve Monkeys

If somebody challenges you to "name an attractive movie star," chances are the first words that come into your head whether you're male or female, mind are "Brad" and "Pitt." Brad Pitt first came to public attention as a Hollywood heartthrob when he appeared in the adaptation of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire alongside Tom Cruise, of course, but it wasn't until David Fincher's Fight Club where he played macho hunk Tyler Durden that this guy really hit his stride as "the actor your girlfriend would prefer to date over you."

4. Leonardo DiCaprio – Django Unchained

Despite the fact that he's usually incredibly diverse with the roles he chooses to take on, Leonardo DiCaprio who is now perhaps one of the world's most acclaimed actors has primarily featured in movies in which he looks damn handsome, regardless of his character. That's not Leo's fault: he's Jack from Titantic, people, and audiences expect this guy to look good, whether he's playing Romeo or Howard Hughes. He's naturally good looking in that all-American way, sure, but let's not forget that Leo has done his fair share of uglying up, too.

5. Rooney Mara – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Director Steven Soderbergh once described Rooney Mara as an actress with an "almost silent-movie face," and he couldn't be more right about that: there's something pure and fresh and plain (in a complimentary way, of course) about Mara that makes you turn your head. You can imagine her pale, sleek features up there on the screen in an old F.W. Murnau movie. But the role that brought this talented actress to public attention wasn't one which cashed-in on the good looks of its star: Mara had to make a transformation of epic proportions.

6. Cameron Diaz – Being John Malkovich

Cameron Diaz made her major movie debut back in 1994, when she appeared as Jim Carrey's love interest, Tina, in The Mask. You know that thing that only happens in cartoons, where a character's eyes will pop out of their head when they glimpse either an oncoming danger or an insanely beautiful woman? That's how the world felt when Diaz smouldered onto the scene, clad in a tight red dress, hurrying to get out of the rain, at the beginning of The Mask. Thinking about that scene, in fact, still makes us giddy (because of the, uh, cinematography, of course).

7. James Franco – Spring Breakers

We're not sure anybody knows, exactly, where James Franco's little turn in Harmony Korine's weird and hallucinogenic satire Spring Breakers came from, but we're also convinced it's sort of genius? Hear us out: Franco, usually cast as rather intelligent, handsome characters (his looks are often compared to those of one James Dean), appears here with his hair in dreads, his teeth capped in gold, and with more tattoos than that uncle of yours who's currently serving time for attempted robbery. That's to say, James Franco looks kind of horrifying.

8. Johnny Depp – Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Johnny Depp likes dressing up in costumes more than the little girl who lives next door to such a point, in fact, that it's actually sort of weird to see Johnny Depp in a movie where he's not dressed in some elaborate costume or beneath layers of make-up. Even when Johnny transforms himself into a filthy pirate or a Mad Hatter, however, he still gets away with looking sort of aesthetically appealing in that odd Johnny Depp way. You know what we mean. Don't pretend. Sweeney Todd, for example, should have been utterly repulsive, but he just isn't.

9. Tom Cruise – Tropic Thunder

Tom Cruise's unexpected appearance in 2008 comedy flick Tropic Thunder didn't extend to much more than that of a lengthy cameo, in which the controversial actor three times featured as one of People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People In The World," we'll have you know plays Len Grossman, a kind of revolting amalgamation of Hollywood executive types (or, at least, what Hollywood executive types are perceived to be like). Cruise seemingly comes out of nowhere, looking unlike we've ever seen him before: horribly fat, bald, sweaty, and wielding an accent.

10. Charlize Theron – Monster

Well, who else was it going to be? Based on the sheer comparison between initial star and final result, Charlize Theron's Oscar-winning turn in Monster, which focused on the exploits of real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos, beats out the rest of the competition with ease. Look at Charlize Theron in the picture above: she's arguably the most wonderful specimen you've ever laid eyes upon, right? And then shift your gaze to the actress in Monster. Has there ever been a movie character which asked its star to transform themselves in such a disturbing way?

Categories

More