Real life trafficking pilot Barry Seal was a heavyweight

May 22, 2015 12:50 GMT  ·  By

In February this year, Tom Cruise was confirmed as lead in the upcoming thriller “Mena,” based on the real-life story of drug and gun trafficking pilot Barry Seal, who worked for both the CIA and the cartels in the ‘80s.

Seal tipped the scales at 300 pounds (136 kg) and it was expected that Cruise pack on the pounds as well, ditching the fat suit for a shot at more recognition on the awards circuit. After all, he is an established action movie star, but he could do with a bit more positive reception in more “serious” acting roles.

“Mena” was supposed to be it.

Tom Cruise is on set but he’s not heavier

This week, photos from the “Mena” set emerged online: you can see one of them attached to this article, with more available at LaineyGossip. In this one, Cruise is wearing a uniform, but at the link, you will see photos of the actor in crumpled, loose shirts, and even sporting a large bruise on his cheek and missing one tooth.

There’s definitely a difference in Cruise’s usually polished, super toned image in his more recent movies, but there’s hardly any weight gain. He’s not even wearing a fat suit or some other kind of prosthetics that would make him appear larger, and he’s definitely not playing a younger version of the character.

Again, Barry Seal was a large man: the difference between 300 pounds (136 kg) and Cruise’s current figure is startling. So either the movie will only be loosely inspired by a real story, or it will be based on actual facts, except for the lead’s weight.

A health risk Cruise wouldn’t take

Tom Cruise is the kind of guy who climbs the world’s tallest buildings and get strapped onto military planes because he insists of giving the role his best, so he does many of the stunts himself.

That said, it seems odd that he would not gain weight for a role that clearly required him to, all the more so since it was expected of him. As we all know, gaining or losing weight, or going through a complete transformative process is the most Oscar-baity thing you can do right now: the Academy loves a good makeunder even more than audiences do.

If there’s truth to the report that Cruise stepped out of his comfort zone to be taken more seriously as an actor (as opposed to just an action movie star), he’s only doing it halfway.

Always the health-conscious guy, maybe he deemed the health implications and risks that come with weight gain or loss too much. After all, there are many precedents of actors (Christian Bale, Jared Leto, Matthew McConaughey) who swore they’d never do something this drastic again for the sake of delivering a compelling, convincing character.

Maybe Cruise took their advice.