Dave Bautista Is 'Training Hard' to Stay Trim Because 'I Look Like a Gorilla' Next to Other Actors

When it comes to staying slim, it’s all part of the job for Dave Bautista.

The former WWE Superstar, 55, shared during an appearance on Tuesday, Sept. 10, issue Insight with Chris Van Vliet podcast that he is “absolutely” focusing on staying slim to avoid being too “distracted” by the camera.

“I started cutting hair for a reason. Why? First, I started cutting hair because I just gained weight,” he explained, expressing that he had become “uncomfortably big” for his lead role in the 2023 thriller. Knock on the cabin and weighed “about 315 pounds.”

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“When I was younger, I had a lot, a lot of muscle. I had to put this in, you know, between movies,” he recalled. “I had very little time to put the suede on. I packed it with fries and pancakes.”

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“That’s how I worked, and the director [M. Night Shyamalan] he asked me, he said, ‘You know, I don’t want you to look like a powerlifter. I just want you to look like a big guy,” Baustista continued. “And so now, looking back on it, man, I probably overreacted.”

Dave Bautista (left) in 2022 and 2024 (right).

David M. Bennett/Dave Bennett/Getty; John Nacion/Getty

“I was probably a little too big, but at the time I was just thinking, ‘I’ve got to get big, I’ve got to get big, I’ve got to get big,’ and I put on an embarrassing amount of weight, and I should have shed it for good,” he said.

The cut ultimately made him feel and look “better” on camera next to the other actors.

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“It’s weird because people think, like for me, people say, ‘God, you’re so skinny.’ I’ve even seen online that some people are concerned about my health, and when I say out loud to people, ‘I’m 6’4″, 240 pounds.’ It sounds like when you say it out loud, it sounds like I’m a big person,” he said.

Dave Bautista arrives at a special screening of Lionsgate’s ‘The Killer’s Game’ in Los Angeles at Regal LA Live on September 9, 2024.

Steve Granitz/FilmMagic

“But for me, because people have seen me so, you know, so much bigger over the years, and you know, they think I’m anorexic,” Bautista continued. “But I’m still just a big human being, so at 6’4″, 240 pounds next to your typical actor, I look like a gorilla, and it bothers me.”

“I’ll probably lose a few more kilos. I’m actually killing myself to be this trim,” he said. “I train hard.”

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Bautista’s latest filmkiller game, hits theaters Friday.

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Source: HIS Education