Joaquin Phoenix suffered for his art

On morning into the second week of shooting, Joaquin Phoenix decided he needed to change his physical appearance.

His character Commodus was written as a large, imposing ruler, and so the actor opted to bulk up and cut his hair in an effort to better fit the description.

A little while later, Ridley Scott made a sweeping comment about Joaquin’s weight that offended him, and so dramatically reduced his food in-take for weeks, which is why Commodus can look a little larger in some scenes.