Netflix hunk shocks fans with staggering four-stone weight loss to play meth addict in new film

ACTOR Sam Cortlett has taken on a new role that has seen him pushed to extreme lengths including a huge weight loss.

The actor, who starred in Netflix series Vikings: Valhalla, has lost four stone to dramatically change his appearance for his new role in upcoming movie He Ain't Heavy.

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The new role sees Cortlett take on the character of Max, a drug addict struggling with a meth addiction.

In the film, Cortlett's character Max struggles with his overwhelming addiction to the point it's destroying his relationships with family.

His sister Jade, played by Leila George, does everything she can to help get her brother clean including kidnapping him to try and save him from his addiction.

Sharing his current appearance, Cortlett shocked fans as he shared his body on Instagram, with some likening him to Christian Bale and his appearance change for 2004 film The Machinist.

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The star wrote in a post to fans: "When I read David’s [Vincent Smith] script, HE AIN’T HEAVY, there was simply nothing I wasn’t willing to do to honour this story.

"Knowing where it came from in his life and how much it mirrored relationships in my own, I knew I had to commit wholeheartedly."

He continued: "With guidance, I ended up going from 92 kg (for Vikings: Valhalla) down to 66 kg for this film.

"I found that the physical structure gifted me so much mental clarity and emotional access that helped me serve the character Max."

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He finished the post by adding: "I would love to hear how the film made you feel when you get a chance to see it."

Fans have commented on how different Cortlett looks as one wrote: "This is crazy. I hope you've been well throughout this process. Thank you for your hard and dedicated work! May the story reach many people! Lots of love."

Another shared: "Fair play. That's an incredible transformation. Christian Bale in The Fighter this reminds me of. Well done."

"This is the Machinist level with Christian Bale. Mind over matter," added a third.

To get his weight down, Cortlett told Confidential how he followed a strict diet for months and walked thousands of steps a day to lose the necessary weight.

Once filming on the movie had wrapped, he also explained that he struggled to get back to regular eating habits again.

He explained: "(I had) dysmorphia afterwards for sure, I struggled coming back to normal.

"My diet before was training for Vikings and so I had to find a completely new normal and my stomach was used to consuming that much food."

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