Casting is among the most scrutinized aspects of adapting books. Authors often provide vivid descriptions of their characters. Weight, height, age, and nationality are all important to paint that picture. As a result, fans have a firm idea of how their favorite figures ought to look. Not everyone has the same idea, though.

In certain adaptations, the characters don’t resemble their book counterparts in the least. Taking such liberties may seem like deliberate disrespect from the filmmakers, but it’s not the end of the world. These changes can sometimes lead to great things. The alternative actors may be compelling in their own right, bringing out the characters’ best qualities and letting viewers connect with them on a new level. They might even be superior to the original text. Because of that, we should strive to keep an open mind, even with our favorite stories. A pleasant surprise could come any time.

Related: 10 Manga to Anime Adaptations That Need to Happen

10 Tom Selleck as Jesse Stone

Despite his young age, Jesse Stone is among the more damaged Robert B. Parker protagonists. The 35-year-old detective is physically imposing, but his drinking problem costs him his marriage and his job at the LAPD. Now serving as the police chief of a small New England town, he seeks recovery and redemption. That groundwork leads to an exceptional portrayal.

Tom Selleck brilliantly plays the downbeat detective in several TV movies. His huge height helps to intimidate, and his charisma lets him subtly showcase the character’s tragic layers. The regret is all over his face, but you also sense an iron resolve to do right by himself and the townspeople. This poignant performance always draws you in. The only caveat is that Selleck is about 20 years too old. That difference may seem like a huge distraction, but it’s easily overlooked, given the compelling drama onscreen.^[1]

9 Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield

J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit revolves around a group of Dwarves and their daring quest, and Thorin certainly looks like a leader with a daring scheme. Though still Dwarf height, he’s tall for his race and has a regal air thanks to his royal lineage. At the same time, he’s clearly past his prime, sporting an aged face and a long, white beard. Oddly enough, his big-screen version is the opposite.

In Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy, Richard Armitage plays the wayward king. While still older than most of his companions, his flowing locks are black with only a few streaks of gray. In addition, his beard is only a few inches long. Luckily, he compensates through sheer gravitas. His deep delivery conveys disarming pathos with every line, and his slow body language betrays years of heavy hardships. Above all, he has the intense eyes of someone with lifelong ambition. You truly believe that he needs to embark on this journey, which is precisely what Thorin calls for.^[2]

8 Anya Chalotra as Yennefer of Vengerberg

A prominent part of Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher tales, Yennefer is simultaneously imposing and appealing. The eternal love of the titular monster slayer, this sorceress is the epitome of classically commanding beauty. Her features are nearly perfect, possessing the purity of youth and the structure of maturity. Topping things off are her black hair, pale skin, and piercingly purple eyes. These traits combine into an impossibly alluring image.

At first glance, the 2019 TV series deliberately deviates from that image. Anya Chalotra’s British-Indian heritage means she lacks Yennefer’s pale complexion and violet pupils, and she seems a little too young to convey the character’s decades of experience. To everyone’s surprise, though, she completely owns the role.

Going into the backstory lets her show the sorceress’s deep-seated emotional turmoil, and she continues hinting at that rawness even as the character matures. At the same time, she carries herself with all the grace, power, and cynicism that you’d expect from Yennefer, and she does so without driving viewers away. Blending those contrasting qualities is the greatest challenge with this heroine, and Chalotra accomplishes it beautifully.^[3]

7 Rufus Sewell as Tom Builder

Tom Builder’s background determines both his name and appearance. A principal figure in Ken Follet’s The Pillars of the Earth, he’s a lifelong mason. That career has given him an immense stature and a strong build. Despite his nonviolent profession, he’s the most physically imposing person wherever he goes. In casting this hero, the filmmakers focus on other aspects.

Rufus Sewell steps into Tom’s shoes for The Pillars of the Earth miniseries. He looks about average size and doesn’t tower over anyone. On one hand, this lessens his credibility as a career stoneworker. On the other hand, you can still see that experience in his demeanor. He ably channels the quiet intelligence needed for this precise line of work, and his striking eyes imbue his lines with the renewed passion Tom feels upon starting the story’s revolutionary building. Most importantly, he holds the paternal warmth that you’d want in this blue-collar family man. Sewell makes you believe he’s this man through subtle nuance. For such deep-set aspects, that approach is appropriate.^[4]

6 Sean Bean as Richard Sharpe

A British soldier in the Napoleonic Wars, Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe is the image of rough riding. He’s spent his life as a rogue and has the unscrupulous appearance to match. His angular bone structure, facial scar, and black hair add up to an unfriendly image. That image suits the chip on his shoulder, but it also makes his casting more surprising.

For the series of TV movies, Sean Bean steps up as Sharpe. He doesn’t look nearly as mean as the novels describe; his hair color isn’t even the same. On the upside, he’s always convincing as a man of action, and he flawlessly portrays the character’s inborn anger and resentment of authority. In fact, he’s so appealing as this flawed hero that Cornwell admits to hearing Bean’s voice when writing the character. You couldn’t ask for a better seal of approval.^[5]

5 Katee Sackhoff as Vic Moretti

Victoria “Vic” Moretti may be another damaged cop, but she’s also an invaluable member of the team in Craig Johnson’s Longmire novels. Previously based in Philadelphia, she was ostracized after becoming a whistleblower. She now seeks a fresh start in Wyoming, where she sticks out like a sore thumb. Caucasians and Native Americans make up the region’s population; Vic comes from an Italian family. That’s clear from her name, but it apparently wasn’t clear to the casting director.

Katee Sackhoff—with her white skin and blonde hair—is the furthest thing from an Italian. Nevertheless, she effortlessly embodies the exiled cop. She has a weathered quality about her, which suits the heroine’s tragic background. This persona makes her a hard figure, but she’s never cold. You can still empathize with her plight, and you don’t deny she cares deeply for her allies. Those characteristics are difficult to blend, but Sackhoff’s success with similar roles lets her do the same here.^[6]

4 Peter Cushing as Victor Frankenstein

This mad scientist is infamous in fiction, but his true appearance may surprise you. The ambitious protagonist of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein hails from a Swiss family and spends his years studying alchemy. He wants to discover the elusive elixir of life—a goal that constantly fuels his experiments. He eventually animates a makeshift human, but that reckless action actually stems from the impetuousness of youth. Frankenstein achieves this milestone soon after his college years. When adapting this iconic tale, though, most filmmakers portray the young academic as an older soul.

One example comes in the form of Peter Cushing. He holds the role throughout Hammer Film’s Frankenstein franchise. Not only does he sport his native British accent, but his angular appearance and calculating demeanor are a far cry from the energetic youth found in Shelley’s novel. However, he compensates with chilling precision.

His immense intellect shows in his articulate delivery and penetrating gaze. You buy him as an academic who knows his subject’s significance. That factor makes him both scarier as a villain and heartbreaking as a tragic figure. Cushing consequently emerges as the best Frankenstein ever put to screen. Considering how many interpretations we’ve seen, that’s saying a lot.^[7]

3 Ben Barnes as Caspian

Caspian X is a pivotal prince in The Chronicles of Narnia. Though technically a member of the invading Telmarines, he sides with the locals and liberates the land from the would-be conquerors. Given his accomplishments, it’s easy to forget that he’s just a preteen boy. With blonde hair and a small frame, he’s the picture of prepubescent naivete. However, he and the rest of the Telmarines (originally European pirates) see a notable change in translation.

In 2008’s The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, these guys are given a much darker complexion akin to conquistadors, many of them played by Latino actors. Thus, Ben Barnes doesn’t resemble the book’s Caspian at all, with differences ranging from his black hair to his older age. That said, he’s arguably more interesting. He still has a youthful drive, but he also imbues the lost prince with uncertainty and emotional volatility. His Caspian is a troubled soul who’s trying to find his place and right the wrongs done to him. A person in his position would naturally have that same attitude, lending an unexpected authenticity to this fantastical figure.^[8]

2 Christopher Lee as Francisco Scaramanga

This Spanish hitman is one of James Bond’s deadliest adversaries. Though employed by many seedy factions in Ian Fleming’s novels, Scaramanga takes center stage in The Man with the Golden Gun. His expert marksmanship lets him live lavishly despite his young age. He’s only in his thirties, and his red hair is in a crew-cut style. Aside from his tall height, he’s not what you’d imagine from a seasoned assassin.

By contrast, Christopher Lee fits snugly into that image. He obviously has the monumental height, but he also sports black hair with gray streaks—slicked back with nary a strand out of place. These facets distinguish him from his book counterpart, but he nails the villain in all other areas. His sinister presence is perfect for a killer with no conscience. In addition, he has the classy charisma of a disciplined hitman.

This is the type of guy who shoots you between the eyes and casually cashes the check. Beneath the surface, though, is a genuine love for killing; it’s an art form for him. That cold passion is almost too intimidating. When Roger Moore’s Bond comes out on top, you don’t buy it for a second. Lee does his job and then some.^[9]

1 Ray Winstone as Beowulf

Since his pivotal poem, Beowulf has stood tall as the prototypical hero. This Swedish warrior combats all manner of monsters through sheer strength, guile, and force of will. He’s a bear of a man—taller than everyone else with the muscle to match. He’s exactly what you’d imagine when picturing a conquering champion.

Among many other things, the 2007 film takes a few liberties with its casting. Ray Winstone assumes the mantle of Beowulf. He’s not exactly brimming with muscle, and his delivery barely hides his Cockney accent. That said, it also carries an electric conviction. He exudes authority and power, giving him firm command of every scene. Plus, the performance capture format lets him look like the strong warrior that the poem describes, and he confidently carries himself to match that body type. Capturing a larger-than-life hero is no small feat, but Winstone is more than capable of that daunting task.^[10]

It’s pretty common for Hollywood to get the rights for books to then adapt them into what they hope to be hit films. With the likes of Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Twilight and The Hunger Games becoming worldwide box office successes, it’s understandable that more book series have been adapted in the hope of being the next big hit. If Twilight and The Hunger Games have shown us anything, it’s that Young Adult (YA) novels can build a dedicated fanbase, meaning that if the first film is done right, a strong case can be made that the rest of the franchise will do well. But what about the first instalments that flopped? Below we’ve got 10 popular YA series that never made it passed the first film. Whether it was bad writing, poor acting or staying too far from the beloved books, these series deserved better.

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10 Beautiful Creatures (2013)

Hot on the heels of the Twilight frenzy, Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl’s Caster Chronicles seemed like the perfect “next big thing.” A similar central plotline to Twilight, you’ve got a human whose romantically involved with a supernatural creature, in this case a “Caster” who will be claimed by either the Light or Dark by her 16th birthday. One review of the 1st book of the series said ‘there’s plenty teens will like: romance, magic, hauntings, and the promise of more to come’ and Publishers Weekly stated that it had a ‘compelling and dimensional mythology.’

Unfortunately, this didn’t translate onto the big screen. Grossing at only $60.1mill on a budget of $60mill, the film bombed. It was even listed in Variety Magazine as ‘one of Hollywood’s biggest box office bombs of 2013’. Sadly, Garcia & Stohl’s work falls victim to Hollywood trying to replicate another film’s success rather than explore and celebrate the unique aspects of the Caster Chronicles that separate it from others in the overpopulated genre.

9 Inkheart (2008)

Beloved German author Cornelia Funke is ‘called the German answer to J.K. Rowling’ with both creating magical worlds an audience can’t help but fall in love with. With a book that sold 3 million copies worldwide, the 2008 film is simply a disappointment. Barely a financial success (a budget of $60mill only grossed $62mill), the main issue with this adaptation is the cutting of a lot of backstory. Naturally, there’s always going to be cuts in book-to-movie adaptation, but the choice of cuts here makes it a confusing film. For an audience who have read the books and familiar with the backstory, the film makes sense. But for anyone who watches the film without this knowledge, it just misses the mark.

The magic that is translated so well in the Harry Potter franchise is not mirrored here. The general consensus on Rotten Tomatoes is that the film is ‘heavy on clichés and light on charm’ and ‘this kid lit fantasy adventure doesn’t quite get off the ground.’ Sadly, author Cornelia Funke has the same thought on the adaptation, saying on reflection that ‘a book is like a flying carpet, you give it to the movies and they hand you a napkin and say, “this is the same thing, Cornelia!” but it’s not!’

8 The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013)

In the overpopulated world of YA fantasy, it is crucial for a film to find its own unique take when using a popular trope. Unfortunately, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones doesn’t quite manage to find its place. Referred to by The Telegraph as ‘one of the most disastrous page-to-screen adaptations in memory’, the film was panned by critics despite its box office success. Critics generally agreed that there was no originality to the film. Rotten Tomatoes states that it ‘borrows ingredients from seemingly every fantasy franchise of the last 30 years- but can’t seem to figure out what to do with them’ whilst The Hollywood Reporter states it ‘seldom feels like anything more than a shameless, soulless knockoff.’

A sequel never happened, but clearly the strong potential of The Mortal Instruments series was too good of an opportunity to waste. It was announced in 2014 that the books would be made into a TV series. Shadowhunters premiered in 2016 and ran for 3 series until its cancellation in 2019.

7 Cirque de Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant (2009)

A key problem with making the first film of a franchise is the balance between the ability for it to work as a standalone film and setting it up for a sequel. If you look at Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone or Twilight, if for some reason the production of their follow up films were discontinued, they would still work (and make sense) on their own. Where Cirque de Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant fails is the introduction of several characters that have no purpose in the film except to set it up for a sequel- a sequel that never happened because the film made a financial loss (grossing at $39.2mill on a $40mill budget).

Cirque de Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant combined all 3 books of Darren Shan’s Vampire Blood Trilogy (of the wider series The Saga of Darren Shan) into one film. This has been proven to work with the likes of A Series of Unfortunate Events which was a box office hit. Unfortunately, in this case they focussed too much on the potential future films than the one facing them. As The Hollywood Reporter summarises perfectly ‘one of the film’s biggest burdens is to establish characters and subplots for potential sequels […] the trouble is, too many characters must be introduced in the interest of future episodes without having much to do with this one.’

6 Fallen (2016)

With a devoted fanbase behind the 6-book series, the film adaptation of Lauren Kate’s first instalment made every mistake we’ve mentioned so far. Considering Fallen reached #3 on The New York Times’ Best Seller List of Children’s Books in Jan 2010 (and remained there until April 2011), there was a lot of great source material to work with. Yet it was barely a box office success. Whatever was popular in the book did not translate to the film, with critics labelling it ‘an eye-rollingly predictable romance’ and ‘nothing but a weaker version of everything that came before it.’

Not only did it come across as unoriginal, but it also fell into the trap of focussing too heavily on the set up for future films over the content of the film at hand. Unsurprisingly, no sequel has been confirmed, although there are still some rumours floating about that one may be in the works.

5 Eragon (2006)

Box office success does not guarantee a hit franchise, and nothing proves that more than Eragon. Grossing at $250.4mill, Eragon was the 31st highest grossing film of 2006. On the flip side, it was the 10th worst reviewed film of 2006 by Rotten Tomatoes. There was a worldwide consensus that the film was bad across the board- acting, visuals, writing and faithfulness to the book. Considering the first two books of The Inheritance Cycle were New York Times Best Sellers, there was a wealth of source material to work with. Yet instead reviews labelled it as ‘amateur writing and borrowing from Lord of the Rings’ and the world of Eragon as ‘without much texture or depth’.

Originally, Eragon was supposed to be the first of three films, with the next two to be filmed back to back, but because of negative reviews the rest of the series was cancelled.

4 I Am Number Four (2011)

As the first novel of the Lorien Legacies, I Am Number Four reached #1 on the New York Times Best Seller List in Children’s Chapter Books and stayed there for 7 consecutive weeks. Despite the 7-book series having a loyal following, the sci fi film adaptation was written off as unoriginal, with ‘bland archetypes and listless recycling of elements from countless other YA titles.’

Although it’s not necessarily considered a box off flop (it grossed at $150mill on a budget of $50mill), any sort of sequel was cancelled. There was clearly hope for a sequel, with reviews stating that the first instalment was ‘loaded with plot devices […] that aren’t fully explained or were seemingly included so they could play a more important role in the followups.’ Despite this, screenwriter Noxon said in 2011 that plans for a sequel were cancelled because of how poorly I Am Number Four was received.

3 Vampire Academy (2014)

Proof that you can’t just stick vampires in a film and expect success, Vampire Academy is nothing short of a flop. With a $30mill budget, the film only grossed $15.4mill and Rolling Stones gave it brutally said the film ‘needs a stake in the heart’. Although many of the adaptations on the list include supernatural creatures, most of them- including this one- fail in their originality. It’s easy for critics and viewers to spot not only similarities but replications of successful series, which is never going to guarantee success. The beauty of series like Harry Potter and Twilight is that they are the first of their kind in a generation.

Whilst the book was voted #4 in ALA’s Teens Top 10, the film only has a 16% rating on Rotten Tomatoes with the general consensus being that it ‘borrows lazily from its predecessors and offers few laughs or thrills to complement its overstuffed backstory’.

2 City of Ember (2008)

The biggest financial flop on the list, City of Ember had a budget of $55mill and only grossed $17.9mill. The saving grace of City of Ember was Saoirse Ronan in the main, heroine role. Critics praised the young actress but found little else about the film to compliment. New York Times writer Stephen Holden said that the ‘talents of Saoirse Ronan […] wasted in the science-fiction juvenilia of City of Ember’ whilst Katey Rich from Cinema Blend said that ‘Saoirse Ronan is a fantastic heroine, but the story and the rest of the cast can’t keep up with her lively pace.’

You only have to compare the book reviews to reviews of the film to see just how much the films lacked the excitement of Jeanne DuPrau’s series. Where the book was described as having ‘full-blooded characters as every bit as good as the plot which would hook readers until the end,’ the film was labelled as a ‘simple minded exercise in juvenile dystopia’ that ‘had been shredded in the editing room.’

1 The Golden Compass (2007)

The #1 spot could only go to the 2007 film adaptation of Phillip Pullman’s Northern Lights, The Golden Compass. Pullman’s series tackles themes of religion and control in a world that is overpowered by The Magisterium (also referred to as ‘The Church’). Although there was some critical debate regarding Pullman’s criticism of Christianity, notable figures such as Rowan Williams (former Archbishop of Canterbury) support the novel and recommended the series for discussion in R.E lessons.

The powerful themes and statements were diluted and redirected the corrupted power away from any religious connotations. The film was a hugely edited down version of the book with ‘focus upon the bare bones’ and ‘removes the very purpose and soul of Pullman’s books.’ Despite moving away from the corrupted Church, the Catholic League called for a boycott of the film, as watching the film would lead to reading the books, which promote atheism. The film was not successful, and star Sam Elliot blamed the discontinued trilogy on censorship and the Catholic Church. All is not lost for adapting Pullman’s trilogy. In November 2019, His Dark Materials TV series was released, which is much more loyal to the trilogy and doesn’t hide the connection between the Magisterium and the Church. Season 3 is currently in the works and the series has an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Top 10 Movies That Helped Ruin Filmmaking

Every comic book enthusiast has their favorite character. When it comes to comics snagged for the big screen, nothing makes fans quite as happy as when a characters’ importance as portrayed in the comic universes is mirrored in the movie. Studios who nail the results are raking in the cash, especially now that countless DC and Marvel films are released every year.

The result? A lot of comic book characters are being given their 15 minutes of fame. Batman, Captain America, Iron Man—the movies produced for these classic characters have packed a punch at the box office. Even lesser-known superheroes like Starlord have been a hit. 

Unfortunately, some superhero characters aren’t given their well-deserved due and are practically unidentifiable from their canon. And fans aren’t having it. 

It could be a lack of canonical knowledge by the writers, creative liberties gone wrong, or less screen time than they deserve. Either way, it’s an issue that’s affected even the largest production companies. Here are the top 10 comic book characters that were poorly represented in the movies. 

10 Maria Hill in Marvel’s “Avengers” Series

There are many errors in the “Avengers” movie series that twisted the logic of the original story. Some of these slips were relatively small while others will make you wonder if filmmakers paid any attention at all.

In the comics, Maria Hill is part of SHIELD’s top-ranking officers and a divisive director. She’s ambitious, motivated, and aggressive—always ready to do what it takes to take care of the world. This part of her personality often brought her into war with other heroes.

In the film, Hill acts as a second-in-command who blindly follows every command, practically manipulated by Fury. Marvel should have let her powerful personality shine, just like in the comics. Her role wasn’t as well embraced in the film as it deserved.

9 Mandarin in “Iron Man 3”

Many comic book fans hate Mandarin for his characterization not being anywhere close to the comic book character. We realize that Aldrich Killian is the movie’s archrival, as shown by Guy Pearce, but his status of being Iron Man’s main enemy wasn’t depicted in Iron Man 3.

Instead, the movie made him seem to be a different character—more like a confused drug addict and a mysterious terrorist, which may have been controversial. The Mandarin we now know is just a bland character represented by an unaware actor, while the guy behind the scenes is totally different.

8 Lex Luthor and Doomsday in “Dawn of Justice”

Many fans were unmoved by “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” The illogical plot and inconsistent characterization received a lot of criticism.

Typically, Lex Luthor is portrayed as a master manipulator with well-defined goals. Yet in the film, Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex throws away a long-standing characterization. Even his head looked completely different from how he’s supposed to look, forgoing his traditional bad-guy baldness for long locks. The story was highly exaggerated and couldn’t even be compared to real life.

It’s pretty evident that Doomsday wasn’t well-placed in the film either. Why would Superman decide to fight in space? To spare human lives, of course. The worst part is when Doomsday falls from space and effortlessly lands in between two metropolises. Yeah, right.

7 Ben Affleck’s “Daredevil” and Jennifer Garner’s “Elektra”

We have to ask: did Ben Affleck have zero interest in playing Daredevil? Because he didn’t make much of an effort. Daredevil is the most basic and one-dimensional translation of Frank Miller’s lawyer-turned-blind-vigilante. So much wasted potential. In all honesty, the movie represented Matt Murdock’s character respectfully. But the movie was generally dull and unexciting.

And while Jennifer Garner is a good actress, many critics claim that Elektra’s material and direction were all over the place. Like Affleck, Jennifer was honest in press interviews, claiming that she thought the movie was bad. She also said that she only did it because of her contractual commitments to the franchise.

6 Bean in “Enders’ Game”

Originating from the Orson Scott Card book, Enders’ game was later translated into a comic book character in 2008. Bean was among the last of Ender’s friends at Battle School, helping Ender with the Dragon Army and a team member of Ender’s as they fought against the buggers. Unfortunately, he wasn’t well-developed in the movie, especially compared to the comic book character.

It’s clear from the canon that Bean was a factor in Ender’s victories as he ranked number two in Battle School. The two supported each other on several occasions. Besides that, the only students who got represented well in the movie were Petra Arkanian and Bonzo Madrid, making everyone else nothing more than a shadow as in the comics.

5 Halle Berry in “Catwoman”

Many actresses have done so well with Catwoman since the ’60s. In the original TV series of “Batman,” Eartha Kitt and Lee Meriwether played her role to pure purr-fection. But how about Halle Berry?

Even Halle Berry agreed with the general public when she showed up for her Razzie Award for Worst Actress for her “Catwoman” film. It was a bad performance, but not because Halle Berry didn’t take her role seriously. It was probably due to the poor characterization of Catwoman. Almost everything about her changed in the movie. Even her name, Selina Kyle, was changed to Patience Phillips in Berry’s version. Ultimately, she failed to depict the DC character in many ways.

4 Venom in “Spiderman 3”

After the first two successful movies in the trilogy contributed to creating superhero films as cinema essentials, “Spiderman 3” failed to live up to standards. It became more of a flopped attempt to give some characters an edge.

Journalist Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote, combine to become Venom, Spiderman’s greatest antagonist and arguably one of the most iconic comic villains. Eddie Brock is portrayed as a heavily built guy in the comic characters with a bad attitude, perfectly matching his personality.

Brock’s visual appearance on-screen hardly showcases the true comic book character. His metamorphosis is underdeveloped in the film, making his transformation into venom untrue to this character.

3 Deadpool in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”

In the initial parts of the movie, Ryan Reynolds took a role in “X-Men Origins” as Wolverine, well-played as depicted in the comic book character. His general demeanor was partly to the source material for a wise-cracking impolite assassin—a pretty good start.

Then in the final act, Deadpool’s personality and classic physique were changed to entirely something else. Deadpool is the Merc with the mouth (as he should) but, after he made his transformation, Deadpool was without a mouth.

His lips were practically melted shut. They also stole powers from Cyclops. He never had the mutant powers of teleportation and Cyclops’s eye beams that he later possessed in the film. His iconic traits from the comic book characters weren’t portrayed. Talk about straying from the canon. 

2 Bane and Mr. Freeze in “Batman and Robin”

“Batman and Robin” is largely considered one of the worst comic book movies, and loads of its criticisms are well-earned. In the comics, Bane is supposed to be a genius tactician and an outstanding fighter, built with muscles. Big muscles.

The stories are about Bane overpowering Batman in all aspects—physically, mentally, and emotionally—with a well-executed plan to accomplish his goal. Yet in the movie, he looks like a big chubby guy with way too many painted-on veins. It’s safe to assume that the creators never read any of the comic book counterparts, or they just decided to create their own altogether. He ought to have matched the character of Batman both intellectually and physically. 

This was close to a slap in the face of every fan of the comic book character. And, of course, we can’t forget about the hilarious Mr. Freeze. The original sub-zero scientist was a devious genius whose frozen bones were practically the secret to eternal youth. Portrayed in the film by Arnold Schwarzenegger, this laughable bank robber in a cryo-suit was a far cry from his memorable terminator-esque style. 

1 Galactus and Doctor Doom in “Fantastic Four”

From the low-budget movie in 1994 to the 2015 “Fant4stic” disappointment, all its film adaptations have, in some way, altered the comic book characters. Through all four movies, even after Marvel sold its film rights to “The Fantastic Four,” none of them has yet managed to get the characters just right. The pacing, acting, the story, and the special effects have all been interfered with.

Doctor Doom was turned into a strange-looking creature that resembled Silver Surfer—with much less personality. He’s undoubtedly the character comic book fanatics love to hate. It would have been more interesting to watch what Doctor Doom would turn out to be if they hadn’t messed with his character.

When translating the Marvel characters who unleash a swirl of emotions on the screen, we can’t forget Galactus. His traditionally daunting appearance deserved more than just their derisory weak depiction of an enormous giant in purple armor. We have to wonder how no one caught that before the film finished. You’d have to know something was missing in your film if a cloud in space is your villain.

Just since the year 2000, when the original X-Men movie premiered, there have been well over 100 live-action movies and television series that featured comic-book-inspired superheroes. Then there are the countless animated movies and television series since then. And yet, the opposite is not true.

Very few of these shows have impacted the comics, and fewer still create characters that become a part of the comic canon. Such rare characters are called canonical immigrants. Here are 10 characters that started out in other mediums but ultimately became recurring characters in comics.

Related: Top 10 Worst Comic Supervillains

10 Batgirl (DC: Batman titles)

For comic book historians, April 14, 1954, was a watershed moment. That was the day Fredric Wertham published Seduction of the Innocent, a warning that the overt violence and hidden references to sex and drugs in comics could encourage criminal activities in kids. While not the moral screed it is often portrayed, a 2012 study of Wertham’s evidence found that he falsified and twisted data to fit his theories. A week after Seduction’s publication, Wertham appeared before the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency which was televised. Wertham told the committee and America that comics were more of a threat to youths than Hitler had been to the world. People panicked, and parents across the nation began canceling subscriptions and throwing comic books in the trash. That summer, 15 comic book publishers went out of business, and the surviving publishers launched the Comics Code Authority to rescue their reputations and sales.

Sales for Detective Comics—better known as DC comics—also took a hard hit after Wertham claimed Superman was a fascist, Wonder Woman was a lesbian, and Batman and Robin were gay lovers. In 1956, to repudiate the latter claim, DC introduced a love interest for Batman in the guise of Kathy Kane, who, like Batman’s alter ego, had inherited a fortune and, like Robin’s alter ego, was a circus performer. And she was also combating crime as Batwoman. In 1961, feeling Robin—who had for 20 years been perpetually a teenager—was left out, DC introduced Betty Kane, a niece of Kathy’s, as Robin’s love interest. Betty also idolized Batwoman and designed her own costume and gadgets to become Bat-girl (with a hyphen). But Bat-girl never caught on, and when the legendary editor Julius Schwartz took over as head of the Batman titles in 1964, he dropped Bat-girl along with other Bat-Family members such as Bat-mite and Bat-hound.^[1]

In 1966, the live-action Batman series debuted on television, and its success re-sparked interest in the Batman titles and may have even saved them. But by the third season, the show’s ratings were dropping, and producer William Dozier—who was also the narrator—came up with an idea to add a female hero to the show to appeal to female viewers. Dozier went to Schwartz, asking him to develop a female character who was the daughter of an already established character, Commissioner James Gordon. Schwartz—along with Gardner Fox, creator of Justice Society and Justice League of America—took that idea and created Barbara Gordon, a librarian by day and Batgirl by night. Artist Carmine Infantino created her look.

But the ABC executives needed to be convinced Batgirl was needed in the show, so Dozier created an eight-minute short where Batgirl rescued Batman and Robin from the villain Killer Moth. Batgirl was not allowed to punch Killer Moth because that was too un-lady-like. She instead became a kicker. Dozier then asked Schwartz to introduce Batgirl in the comics to create a buzz for the upcoming season of Batman. So Batgirl appeared first in Detective Comics #359 (January 1967), but only after she was created for television. Since then, several women have worn Batgirl’s cowl, and she is a regular in the Batman titles. She has now and then been given her own title, and work has already begun on a Batgirl movie.^[2]

9 Firestar (Marvel: X-Men titles

Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends was a Saturday morning cartoon series that debuted in 1981 on NBC and ran for three seasons. It went in an unusual direction by placing Spider-Man’s alter ego, Peter Parker, as a college student at Empire State University with two roommates who are also superheroes: Iceman (Bobby Drake) and Firestar (Angelica Jones). The producers originally wanted a fire and ice theme in Spidey’s roomies and wanted Iceman from the X-Men and the Human Torch (Johnny Storm) from the Fantastic Four. But Universal Studios had optioned the Human Torch character for a potential solo project that ultimately never happened. As a result, the Human Torch could not be used by anyone. So the producers created their own character with the ability to manipulate microwave radiation to fly and shoot flames from her hands.

Some of the names the production toyed with initially were Heatwave, Firefly, and Starblaze. One of the writers, Dennis Marks, christened Firestar’s alter ego—Angelica Jones—after an old girlfriend. In the show, Firestar is identified as a former X-Men along with Iceman, but when her backstory was fleshed out in the comics, she is initially trained as a Hellion at the Hell Fire’s Club. One of her earliest missions was to fight against the X-Men. Later she joined the New Warriors, where she became a hero and was even given her own comic-book miniseries.^[3]

8 Jimmy Olsen (DC: Superman titles)

It’s hard to imagine Superman or his alter ego Clark Kent without his BFF Jimmy Olsen, but Jimmy has sat out a portion of Superman’s 83-year history. It’s true that just months after Superman’s introduction in the summer of 1938, Action Comics #6 had an anonymous young man with red hair and freckles arrive in Metropolis staring dreamily at a billboard that declares the city is the “Home of Superman!” He muses, “I’m going to get a job and live in Metropolis. Gee, wouldn’t it be wonderful if I met Superman! But I won’t have that luck.”

Later, DC would retcon that character to be Jimmy Olsen. But in reality, the character wasn’t introduced until Olsen became a cub reporter for the newspaper The Daily Planet during the April 15, 1940, radio program The Adventures of Superman. The radio serials relied almost entirely on conversations and sound effects to tell the story, and Jimmy Olsen—and The Daily Planet’s head editor Perry White–were created as conversation foils for the program. Jimmy became so popular, his comic book persona was introduced in the November/December 1941 issue of Superman #13.

After a few more appearances, Jimmy Olsen disappeared from the Superman titles for most of the 1940s, considered the Golden Age of comics. But in 1952, Olsen was resurrected in the television series Adventures of Superman, and interest in the reporter/photographer reignited. In 1954 and lasting nearly 20 years, Olsen had his own title called Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen. Perhaps the title was best remembered for the issues where Olsen was transformed into everything from a monster-sized turtle, a genie in a bottle, a human porcupine, a six-armed octopus (a sextapus?) and Elastic Lad, an early version of Elongated Man. In this title, readers were first introduced to Darkseid, the New Gods, and the cast of characters in the Fourth World.^[4]

7 Phil Coulson (Marvel: Avengers titles)

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) encompasses to date 25 movies, more than a dozen television series, and a handful of podcasts. And what actor has had more screen time than any other? That’s right, Clark Gregg playing Agent Phil Coulson. Introduced in the first MCU movie—Ironman (2008)—he appeared in four more movies, two straight-to-video shorts, one web series, and all 136 episodes of ABC’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Gregg’s Coulson had a small and easily forgettable part in Ironman annoying Pepper Potts and Tony Stark before helping them thwart Obadiah Stane’s plans to murder them. But Gregg made the most of his role. Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury didn’t appear until the post-credit scene of that film, and both he and Gregg appeared in the sequel Ironman 2 (2010).

A year later, it looked as if the MCU was finally going to be launched with the release of Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger before the release of an Avenger movie in 2012. But the script for Thor was scrapped just weeks before principal filming, and writers Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz were tasked with quickly writing a new screenplay. While piecing together the story, Miller and Stentz decided that they needed S.H.I.E.L.D. to be involved. But Samuel Jackson was still negotiating his contract to play Fury, and with time growing short, they turned to Gregg’s Coulson. This led to a pivotal role in Avengers (2012) and the lead in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. beginning in 2014.

Coulson had become so popular with the first two Ironman movies that he appeared in comic books for the first time in issue #6 of the 2011-2012 series Battle Scars that delved into Nick Fury’s backstory. Coulson was an Army Ranger serving in Afghanistan, fighting alongside and saving the life of Marcus Johnson, Nick Fury’s son. In the comics, Coulson was given the responsibility to work with superhumans because he collected their memorabilia and studied their strengths and weaknesses. This made him exceptionally gifted in dealing with challenging personalities such as Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, and Wade Wilson (aka Deadpool).^[5]

6 Sakura Kasugano (UDON: Street Fighter titles)

It may not seem so remarkable that Sakura Kasugano did not originate from comic books. After all, if you know who she is, you most likely encountered her in one of the many other mediums she has appeared in, specifically a Capcom Street Fighter game from 1994 onward. In 2017 when Street Fighter turned 30, Capcom polled fans to see who was the most popular out of the 109 playable Street Fighters they’d introduced both in the mainline games and spin-offs. After more than 150,000 votes, Sakura topped the list. Her boyfriend and mentor Ryu, considered the protagonist of the Street Fighter series, only made 9th place. Of the dozen original characters from the first Street Fighter arcade game, Sagat was 7th, Ken 15th, Gen 30th, Adon 33rd, Eagle 60th, Retsu 69th, Geki 80th, Birdie 87th, Joe 96th, Mike 99th, and Lee 100th.

Sakura’s creator Akira Yasuda gave her an unusual look, a Japanese schoolgirl uniform with a mini-skirt, sailor blouse with a yellow scarf tied in front, red sneakers and red combat gloves, and a white headband Ryu gave her. Her personality was also made to be relatable to a young audience, as she was a teenager and awkward, yet skilled in Ryu’s “Shotokan” fighting style. She has appeared in at least 21 different video games, almost all of them as a playable street fighter. She has also appeared in anime and American animated television productions. She was a lead character in a straight-to-home video live-action movie, the subject of a manga series, and appeared in at least 70 issues of Street Fighter comic book titles.^[6]

5 Rocksteady and Bebop (IDW Comics: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles titles)

Of all the villains the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) face, Shredder and Krang are the most formidable. But the most beloved are the giant warthog and rhinoceros Bebop and Rocksteady. When Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman created and published the first TMNT comics in 1984, it was inspired by characters such as Marvel’s Daredevil and the New Mutants, along with Frank Miller’s Ronin, and the self-published comic about an anthropomorphic aardvark named Cerebus. For instance, the turtles—like Daredevil—have a Ninjitsu mentor, their archenemy was the Foot (a play on Daredevil’s the Hand), and are mutated by a mysterious liquid in a container that fell off a truck. While a parody, the story in that first comic was adult, featuring dark subjects such as the beating of a girlfriend, revenge, drug and arms smuggling, and murder. There was little room for comic relief characters such as Rocksteady and Bebop.

In 1987, while negotiating with Playmate Toys for a line of toys based on TMNT, Eastman and Laird were asked to develop more characters for the line. Laird developed Bebop and Rocksteady for them, something he would soon regret. Bebop was named after a form of jazz music, Rocksteady after a type of Reggae music. The next year, the animated Saturday morning series Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles premiered, geared more for kids, the storyline tweaked to be more light-hearted. And Bebop and Rocksteady were made to be deeply stupid, inept, and goofy. This made them a fan favorite for everyone but Laird. His animosity toward the characters was part of why they did not appear in the second 1991 TMNT movie. Instead, a mutated gray wolf (Rahaz) and alligator snapping turtle (Tokka) were introduced. Bebop and Rocksteady made their first comic book appearance in 1988 when the title was published by Archie Comics. In 2011, the titles moved to IDW Comics. ^[7]

4 Isis (DC: Shazam titles)

Like Thor in Marvel comics, Isis is based on an ancient god, in this case, an Egyptian one, daughter of the earth god Geb and sky goddess Nut, sister to the gods Osiris, Seth, and Nephthys. Isis married her brother Osiris (the Egyptian royals did that a lot), but their brother Seth killed Osiris out of jealousy and later cut Osiris into itty, bitty pieces. Isis resurrected Osiris into a sort of Egyptian zombie, reassembled her husband’s various pieces—except his penis—and kept them together by wrapping him in bandages like a mummy. She then coupled with this penis-less zombie/mummy (yeah, don’t know how that worked) and gave birth to another god, Horus. Not only could she resurrect the dead, but she could also transform into birds or animals.

Fast-forward a few millennia to September 6, 1975, when producers at Filmation introduced a brand new female superhero for the second half of the live-action Shazam!/Isis Hour as part of CBS’s Saturday morning line-up (it was only during syndication that her show was renamed The Secrets of Isis). Her debut made her the first female live-action television superhero preceding The Bionic Woman by four months and Wonder Woman by seven. The show featured a high school teacher who found an amulet during an archeological dig that gave her the powers of the legendary god. It lasted two seasons and 22 episodes with a few cross-overs to fight alongside Captain Marvel in Shazam!. She appeared in comics for the first time in Shazam! #25 (Sept-Oct 1976) and garnered her own series shortly after. But she was not as popular as hoped, and aside from a few appearances in animated programs, Isis disappeared from all forms of media by the early 1980s.

Isis was reintroduced in 2006 as part of DC’s massive reboot, 52. This time she was an Egyptian slave delivered to the anti-superhero Black Adam, the despotic ruler of Kahndaq, a fictional country situated on the Sinai Peninsula. After they married and Isis softened Black Adam’s temper, she was killed in a battle, the first of many times she would take a dirt nap, then be resurrected. She has also appeared in a 2010 episode of Smallville, on Legends of Tomorrow in 2016, and is expected to appear in the movie The Black Adam, scheduled to be released in 2022.^[8]

3 Luis (Marvel: Ant-Man titles)

The MCU has been responsible for creating a number of supporting characters for their movies and television shows, with Phil Coulson only one of them. There’s astrophysicist Dr. Erik Selvig, a character played by Stellan Skarsgard and introduced in Thor (2011). He went on to play a pivotal role in The Avengers (2012) and appeared in Thor: The Dark World (2013) and Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015). His intern Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), was also created for Thor and appeared in Dark World and the series WandaVision (2021). There’s also the precocious kid, Harley Keener (Ty Simpkins), in Ironman 3 (2013) and Senator Stern (Gary Shandling) in Ironman 2 (2010) and Captain America: Winter Soldier (2014). Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. introduced several characters such as Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen), Raina (Ruth Negga), and Gideon Malick (Powers Boothe). But one supporting character has fans clamoring for more of him: Luis from Ant-Man (2015).

Luis, unfortunately, has not been given a last name, but Michael Peña’s portrayal with his infectious smile and his running gag where he tells a long, convoluted story to convey a simple premise has made the character unforgettable. His popularity was such that Luis has already appeared in some Ant-Man titles beginning with Astonishing Ant-Man #1 in 2015. There’s been speculation that Luis might be given a superhero role in the coming Ant-Man 3, something Peña has been campaigning for since Ant-Man 2. ^[9]

2 X-23 (Marvel: X-Men titles)

Writer Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost created X-23 in 2003 for the animated series X-Men: Evolution. Billed as a more youthful Wolverine, Laura Howlett is Wolverine’s clone developed by HYDRA to be the perfect assassin. But the DNA sample they collected from Wolverine was damaged, and genetic variations—including the sex of the clone—were administered. HYDRA isolated and abused Laura to repress her emotions and deprive her of morals, trained her in killing techniques, and like Wolverine, strengthened her claws—two in each hand and one in each foot—with indestructible adamantium. Premiering in an August 2003 episode, she became so popular that by December of that same year, X-23 made her debut in comics, NYX #3.

Since then, X-23 has appeared in well over 2,000 issues of X-Men titles, becoming Wolverine’s daughter figure, fighting alongside him and eventually replacing him. Her popularity was such that it was inevitable she would find herself on the big screen. It happened in 2017 in Hugh Jackman’s final film as Wolverine, Logan. An X-23 solo film has been planned, but with Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, returning X-Men and Fantastic Four to Marvel Studios, the plans are still uncertain.^[10]

1 Harley Quinn (DC: Batman titles)

Arguably among the most popular female comic book characters of all time, Harley Quinn certainly does not fit the typical mold of a comic book character, hero or villain. She’s existed less than 30 years, yet her character has more depth than characters who’ve existed twice that. She is, after all, insane, a murderess, and is gleefully—and I do mean gleefully—unscrupulous. She makes interesting choices in lovers: on the one hand, the homicidal eco-terrorist Poison Ivy (yes, her writers acknowledge that Harley and Ivy have more than a friendship); on the other hand, the psychotic mass murderer Joker who relishes abusing her. And, like the Joker (and, for that matter, their nemesis Batman), she has no real superpowers (at least most of the time, she doesn’t). Except maybe that she is joyfully unpredictable, making her—in a word—fun.

No one is more shocked at Harley’s popularity than the people who pieced her together. That began way back in 1987 when the actress Arleen Sorkin was playing the recurring character Calliope Jones on the soap opera Days of Our Lives. Calliope was a loud, flighty woman with a “Noo-Yawk” accent, and Sorkin was always coming up with ideas to make her character fresh. After attending a screening of the comedy Princess Bride, Sorkin went to the Days of Our Lives showrunners to ask if they could have a bedtime story dream sequence with kings and queens in medieval clothes. They agreed and dressed Calliope as a court jester and had her roller skate into court to cheer up the royals with lame jokes and a quarter moon imprinted on the back of her underwear.

Fast-forward to 1991, when writer Paul Dini was a freelance writer working on scripts for Batman: The Animated Series set to air on Fox Kids. Dini and Sorkin had been college friends, and Sorkin had sent Dini a VHS tape of her favorite Days of Our Lives bits, including the court jester scene. Dini was working on a script that featured the Joker and wanted an interesting character to play one of the villain’s henchmen. Dini remembered that in the 1960s’ live-action Batman, the Joker, Penguin, and Riddler all had henchwomen and thought it might be the direction he wanted to go. Sick and at home one day, Dini popped Sorkin’s tape in his player, and when he came upon the court jester scene, he began to make connections. The Joker was inspired by playing cards, as were the male and female versions of the Harlequin. It seemed a natural combination, and Harleen Quinzel—Harley Quinn—was born.

Bruce Timm gave Harley her look. Harley was supposed to be a one-off character appearing in just one episode—“Joker’s Favor”—but Timm threw himself into researching harlequin costumes and developed the black and red outfit with ruffles, the two-pointed Jack-in-the-Box cap with pompoms at the tips of the two tails. Sorkin was asked to voice Harley, and she used a combination of Calliope and Ellen Green’s depiction of Audrey in the musical The Little Shop of Horrors to form the voice and personality. To get the right pitch and accent, she practiced singing “Adelaide’s Lament” from the musical Guys and Dolls. When Dini saw the animation paired with Sorkin’s voice, he knew they had something special, especially when Mark Hamill agreed to voice the Joker. The dynamic between Hamill’s and Sorkin’s characters convinced the writers to bring Harley back for more episodes.

Harley made her comic book debut the next year in The Batman Adventures #12, a comic in DC’s Animated Universe. As her popularity grew, she was brought over to the mainstream DC universe and written as a much darker, more tragic character. She became darker still when she joined the Suicide Squad, and it was as a member of that team that she finally hit the live-action big screen in Suicide Squad (2016), subsequently appearing in Birds of Prey (2020) and Suicide Squad 2 (2021).^[11]

Extreme body transformations are one of the worst-kept secrets in Hollywood. Now that comic book-based movies dominate the cultural zeitgeist, casting larger-than-life actors requires a little more than a few pushups and good lighting.

Christian Bale showed how black coffee, one apple, and one can of tuna per day could take him from Batman shape to dangerously emaciated within a span of four months. Matt Damon, Jared Leto, and Matthew McConaughey are no strangers to jumping up and down the scale for movie roles. In the superhero genre, there’s nowhere to go but up. Up the food intake. Up the supplements. Up the muscle. When millions of dollars and the future of major franchises are at stake, everyone has got to look the part.

Some stars credit chicken, broccoli, and clean living for their muscly makeovers. Others have admitted to more…say…intense methods to achieve peak cape shape. It may have been either keto and CrossFit or dehydration and deadlifts. These ten devoted actors pushed their bodies to another level by whatever means necessary.

Related: 10 Comic Book Moments That Drew Unwanted Controversy

10 Chris Hemsworth: Thor

Fitness has always played a part in Chris Hemsworth’s life. In earlier roles like Star Trek and Cabin in the Woods, Hemsworth was in good shape, but not god shape.

Hemsworth stated, “In the comic strip, Thor looks to be around 500lb, so obviously that wasn’t my goal.” He added that he wanted to “look the part and be as powerful as strong as I could while still maintaining that element of agility.”

Hemsworth enlisted the help of personal trainer Michael Knight (not the one from Knight Rider) to push him into true superhero shape. When asked about Hemsworth’s workout regimen, Knight reported that the routine was split into two parts; “The first was a bodybuilder-type protocol focused on high-weight, low-rep moves designed to pack on maximum size, while the second was total-body circuits designed to shift his excess fat while maintaining muscle.”

Hemsworth stated that he ate a protein-heavy diet and used monitored dehydration to make his muscle fibers pop. His trainer has gone on record as saying that he wouldn’t recommend his Thor diet and exercise regimen to others as it is not a sustainable model.^[1]

9 Henry Cavill: Superman

Unlike Kal-El, Henry Cavill is but a mere human. His transformation for Man of Steel required heaps of calories, exercise, and mental grit. Early in his acting career, Cavill’s physique could be described as “slim fit.” This was fine for his roles in The Tudors and Immortals, but it wouldn’t cut the mustard as Superman.

To achieve a believable Kryptonian body, Cavill turned to Mark Twight, the man who whipped the cast of 300 into fighting shape. Cavill trained up to two-and-a-half hours a day, four to five days a week. To pack on muscle and help with exercise recovery, Cavill consumed around 5,000 calories each day. This was largely meat, vegetables, and protein shakes. He has owned up to enjoying some pizza and other cheat meals during the grueling six-month process.

Utilizing bodybuilding and CrossFit workouts, Cavill packed on 18 pounds of muscle while keeping his body fat below 10%. Results like this would be nigh impossible for the average Joe. Cavill has openly stated that while steroids were an option, both he and Mark Twight were dead set against it. When asked why he took the tougher route, Cavill said, “To take a shortcut to that place is nothing that Superman would do.”^[2]

8 Chris Evans: Captain America

Apparently, Chris Evans used to skip leg day. As his fitness trainer Simon Waterson stated, “He just trained his biceps, and his chest, and his abs, and that was it. He could do a lot of pushing exercises but not a lot of pulling exercises. So he didn’t deadlift, he didn’t do many pull-ups, he didn’t have very overdeveloped legs.”

Since Waterson didn’t have a vial of super-soldier serum in his back pocket, he opted for a workout plan that would not only build muscle but also even out lagging body parts. Waterson claimed that they used a combination of heavy lifting and dynamic circuits, focusing on both “the aesthetic and the athletic.”

Evans’s diet leaned heavily on protein, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, and supplements. In an interview, Evans reported, “Supplement-wise, I used a bit of glutamine, whey protein shakes, branched-chain amino acids, then 500 mg of Omega-3, 6, and 9 fatty acids.”^[3]

Based on Evans’s physique throughout the Marvel films, it appears he really can do this all day.

7 Hugh Jackman: Wolverine

Rather than showing up to the set of X-Men in Wolverine shape, Jackman’s physique gradually became more savage throughout the first three films. He reached his peak condition 13 years after his first appearance as the clawed mutant.

Jackman had been more of a song and dance man before being cast in X-Men (2000). He was by no means in bad shape, but his shirtless scenes were kept to a minimum. That went out the window by the time production began on 2013’s The Wolverine. In preparation for The Wolverine and Logan (2017), Jackman recruited fitness expert Dave Kingsbury.

Like others on this list, Jackman consumed mass amounts of meat, fish, vegetables, rice, and oatmeal. One key element, according to Kingsbury, was carb cycling. Jackman ate carbohydrates before 3:00 pm on training days and essentially eliminated them every other day. Supplement-wise, Jackman used pre-workout, creatine monohydrate, carnitine, and branch-chained amino acids. Hugh’s workout plan was as regimented as his diet. Kingsbury put Jackman on a four-week weightlifting program focused on progressively higher weight the first three weeks and lighter weight the fourth.

While the details were intricate, the exercises themselves weren’t. Jackman stuck to mostly bench press, pull-ups, squats, and deadlifts…everything a growing boy needs.^[4]

6 Chris Pratt: Star Lord

During his Parks & Recreation days, Chris Pratt looked as though he could be a guardian of the donuts, but not the galaxy. To become Star Lord, Pratt utilized both a fitness trainer and a nutritionist to boost his body from flab to fab.

Dr. Phil Goglia overhauled Pratt’s diet to contain “clean” food and supplements. Pratt reported supplementing with whey protein, a testosterone booster, branch chain amino acids, and fat burners. Although Pratt was trying to drop body fat, his overall caloric intake was increased to complement his intense training regimen.

Pratt worked with ex-Navy SEAL Duffy Gaver to put those calories to work. Pratt spent five months putting in four to six training sessions each week. He utilized a bodybuilding training style by focusing on different muscle groups each session. The results spoke for themselves: Pratt dropped over 60 pounds (27 kilograms) while adding lean muscle to his physique.

While his weight has fluctuated somewhat since Guardians of the Galaxy, he has managed to avoid slipping back to his Andy Dwyer bod.^[5]

5 J.K. Simmons: Commissioner Gordon

J.K. Simmons has starred in two major superhero movies but has never played a superhuman. That didn’t stop him from going to shred city in preparation to play James Gordon in 2017’s Justice League.

The 61-year-old Whiplash star brought on esteemed trainer-to-the-stars Aaron Williamson to build him into the grizzled police commissioner. Williamson said in an interview with Business Insider, “He wants to have some ‘beefing’ guns to show people that he is just not that guy that does Farmers commercials.”

Williamson put Simmons on a two-workout program and mapped out a muscle-bulking meal plan. Three to four days per week, Simmons would ride his bicycle to the gym before warming up with 15 minutes of cardio. Workout #1 focused on chest/back/shoulders, and Workout #2 was all arms and abs (as evidenced by the Instagram pictures he posted then).

Simmons’s diet was like others on the list: Lean meat, veggies, oats, and a few squares of dark chocolate as “cheats.” Considering he wouldn’t have to display his new body in Justice League, the effort he made was impressive… even if he was skipping leg day.^[6]

4 Kumail Nanjiani: Kingo

Kumail Nanjiani put in the extra effort on his way to becoming Kingo in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “Chase the pain” was the Silicon Valley star’s training mantra.

Nanjiani trained five days a week for the year leading up to shooting Eternals. The bulk of this was with trainer Grant Roberts. He spent the first six months bulking. Utilizing “old school” lifts and electric stimulation devices, Nanjiani focused purely on gaining size.

Next was a “sculpting” phase. This involved classic bodybuilder workouts, drop sets (weight goes up as the reps go down), and cable machines to achieve maximum muscle growth. Nanjiani ate four meals a day, with one cheat meal per week. His diet consisted mainly of eggs, chicken, rice, fish, avocados, and protein bars. In addition, he used a simple supplement stack of pre-workout, whey protein, vitamins, and cod liver oil.

Nanjiani has no plans to test his new physique out in a boxing ring or MMA cage. When asked if he felt he was now more intimidating, he stated, “Not at all. These muscles are useless. They’re decorative.”^[7]

3 Brie Larson: Carol Danvers

“Nine months of training really does some stuff to your body.” Truer words were never spoken by Captain Marvel star Brie Larson. The actress had already attained a lean, sinewy physique for her role in the film Room. But prepping to play Carol Danvers required taking her baseline to the next level.

Larson worked with trainer Jason Walsh of Rise Movement to get her body in Marvel shape. Walsh told Men’s Journal that Larson’s routine focused on mobility work, activation work, and then primary strength exercises. Walsh said, “That could be a squat aspect, bilateral exercises, unilateral moves, hip-hinge work, and a lot of hip thrusting and posterior chain work. Then we’d do circuits of secondary exercises—basically everything other than those primary moves.”

This included a deadlift, back and biceps routine, and a squats, glutes, and legs routine. For her diet, Larson started eating paleo before moving into a “clean food” diet or high protein and low carb food. She supplemented her training with creatine monohydrate.

The grind to get in Carol Danvers shape yielded one unexpected outcome: Larson reached her goal of being able to perform one-armed pull-ups.^[8]

2 Tom Holland: Spider-Man

It’s fortunate for Tom Holland that Peter Parker isn’t built like Thor Odinson. Holland had just been required to lose weight for his previous film, leaving him just six weeks to transform his svelte figure into that of the agile web-slinger.

With the help of trainer George Ashwell, Holland added an impressive 15.5 pounds (7 kilograms) of muscle to his 5’8″ (173-meter) frame. Because time was of the essence, Holland worked with Ashwell every day of those six weeks.

His routine focused on compound movements and functional exercises. This would help Holland fill out the Spidey suit a bit while improving movement and agility. This required stretching, deadlifts, incline bench presses, dips, bear crawls, dumbbell thrusters, renegade rows, chin-ups, and running. For recovery, Holland spent 30 minutes on the massage table after each session.

To keep body fat low while building muscle, Ashwell put Holland on a “two-fist” bulking plan. That meant that each meal eaten contained two fist-sized portions each of protein, carbs, and greens. For supplementation, he kept it simple, using collagen, Omega-3 fatty acids, and vitamins. For the third Spider-Man film, he also incorporated muscle stimulation devices into his workouts.^[9]

1 Natalie Portman: Jane Foster/Mighty Thor

When Natalie Portman throws herself into film roles, she takes it to the next level of dedication. She shaved her head for V for Vendetta and emaciated herself for her role in Black Swan.

Now that she is taking up the mantle of Thor, another radical body renovation was necessary. This time, the goal was to pack on lean muscle. Portman generally stays fit by running and practicing “Gyrotonic” exercises (Imagine a blend of yoga, tai-chi, and gymnastics).

Trainer Naomi Pendergast worked with Portman for four months before shooting, then all through production. Regarding her preparation for the latest Thor film, Portman has been tight-lipped about her actual routine. She did reveal to Vanity Fair, “We did a lot of weight training and a lot of protein shakes—heavyweight training that I haven’t ever done before.”

Portman has been a vegan or vegetarian since she was nine years old. To fuel her workouts, she took in a lot of iron-rich veggies, fruit, almond milk, leafy greens, oatmeal, and pasta. Her supplement regimen was simple: Vitamin D and a monthly Vitamin B-12 shot.

When asked by television host Andy Cohen if she had a workout plan like co-star Chris Hemsworth’s, Portman said, “Yes, I am training, and I’m in so much pain. Like, I’m not good at this.” Good or not, the results have spoken for themselves. She is worthy.^[10]