Jeremy Allen White Made a Major Transformation to Star Alongside Zac Efron in ‘The Iron Claw'

Jeremy Allen White has made a big name for himself in Hollywood, winning awards for his role in The Bear and catching praise for turns in movies like The Rental and Fingernails. White is set to take on his biggest film role, and most startling transformation, yet in A24’s biographical drama The Iron Claw, in theaters December 22.

In Sean Durkin’s film, White plays Kerry Von Erich, one of four brothers who rose to prominence in the wrestling world during the 1970s and ‘80s. The other Von Erich brothers are played by Zac Efron, Harris Dickinson, and Stanley Simons.

The Iron Claw required each actor to radically alter their physique. Efron has been taking much of the heat for this, with fans wondering if he’s had plastic surgery. (Efron has had plastic surgery, but to repair muscle injuries related to a broken jaw he suffered in 2013, per People.)

White, however, is the actor who made the biggest transformation for the film. The lanky star transformed into a hulking, ripped wrestler thanks in part to a diet he called “just gross” in an Esquire interview last May. The rest of his change can be attributed to months of wrestling training, and utilizing the on-set gym equipment between takes.

The actor revisited his traumatic food memories in an Entertainment Weekly profile, published Monday, which fittingly features White, Efron, and Dickinson messily eating some ribs. The outlet notes that “White shakes his head at the memory of their diet,” when he’s asked to explain their meal schedule.

"I was just eating frozen turkey patties and avocados and protein shakes and waffles and almond butter," he recalled.

Simons recalled that his co-star’s best-known role, as chef Carmy on The Bear, only created more food for them to finish. “We'd go to restaurants and [the employees] would be like, 'Oh my gosh, it's Jeremy!' and bring out a free dish. We were eating a lot."

White previously made similar remarks to Esquire, reiterating his waffle and avocado-heavy diet. "Yes, eating all the time," he confirmed. "Like, never stopping. It's really just gross. You're trying to consume as much as you possibly can, and, to be honest, you don't feel great. I was training as well, but, I don't know, trying to get that big, it's no way to live."

The Iron Claw hits theaters on December 22.