Austin Butler says he copied Ryan Gosling and drank microwaved ice cream to gain weight for 'Elvis': 'It's fun for a week and then you feel awful about yourself'

• Austin Butler said he microwaved ice cream and drank it to put weight on for "Elvis."
• The actor explained that he heard Ryan Gosling did the same thing to prepare for "The Lovely Bones."

Austin Butler really committed himself to playing musical icon Elvis Presley for Baz Luhrmann's "Elvis," and not only did he change his accent to match the singer, but the actor also put on plenty of weight as he played the star at different points in his life.

The actor recently spoke to Variety about working on the film, recalling that he was inspired by stories about Ryan Gosling's preparation for Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones."

Butler explained that he would microwave Häagen-Dazs ice cream and drink it like Gosling did because studio Warner Bros. wasn't convinced that he could play an older Elvis.

He said: "I heard that when Ryan Gosling was going to do 'The Lovely Bones,' had microwaved Häagen-Dazs and would drink it. So I started doing that. I would go get two dozen doughnuts and eat them all. I really started to pack on some pounds."

The star then joked that "it's fun for a week," but then "you feel awful about yourself."

Butler went on to say that although the original plan was to shoot the movie "chronologically," the pandemic made that impossible, so he had to portray Elvis in different eras over consecutive days.

He recalled: "One day we'd be in 1974 and the next day we'd be in 1956. So you got to be able to switch back and forth, vocally and physically."

In another interview on Thursday's episode of "Hot Ones," Butler told host Sean Evans that he got into shape for his next project, "Dune: Part Two," thanks to a trainer who pushed him until he vomited.

He said: "Yeah, I mean, [my trainer] basically just worked me until I would throw up every time."

The actor explained that he chose Duffy Gaver to help him because he was the "legend" who trained Brad Pitt for his role in "Troy."

Butler said: "Duffy, I found him because he's this sort of legend. He was a Navy Seal and he trained Brad Pitt for 'Troy.' And he's the nicest guy as well. But he also doesn't really count reps."

The 31-year-old star said that the trainer pushed him until he was "dying," and then pushed him some more.

"He just goes for it and you're just going and you're like, 'How many of these am I going to do?'" Butler said. "And once you get to the point where you're dying and you can hardly do another, he goes, 'Alright, do 10 more.'"