Christian Bale Is Unrecognizable In His Latest Role

Christian Bale is no stranger to altering his appearance for a role.

He's often shed weight for films, whittling himself down to one third of his body weight in one instance. But Bale's latest role has him going to the other weight extreme.

Here's what the 39-year-old looks like normally, at "The Dark Knight Rises" premiere with his wife, Sandra Bale, in July 2012:

For his role as an industrial worker who hasn't slept in a year in 2004's "The Machinist," Bale lost 63 pounds by living on a diet of apples, coffee and cigarettes:

For 2010's "The Fighter," Bale again shed weight to play a boxer-turned-drug addict. He won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role portraying Dicky Eklund:

For his latest role as a '70s con man-turned-FBI agent, Bale went to the other weight extreme and packed on the pounds.

The untitled David. O Russell film is currently shooting in Massachusetts and also stars Amy Adams (pictured below) as well as "Silver Linings Playbook" actors Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper.

"Bale plays Melvin Weinberg, a con man turned FBI worker who directed the Abscam sting operation, which resulted in the conviction of several corrupt U.S. congressmen," reports People.

Check out Bale's new look below: