Robert de Niro Opens up About the Film That Made Him Feel Terrible

The creative partnership between Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro consistently results in projects that push the boundaries of storytelling. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the 1980 classic Raging Bull, which provided the actor with what many critics consider his most iconic role.

It was actually the actor who brought the autobiography of boxer Jake LaMotta to the director, eventually convincing him to lead the production despite his early doubts about the material.

The biographical drama tracks LaMotta’s rise as a middleweight champion and his turbulent life outside the ring, which ultimately led to his downfall. The film became a pivotal stepping stone for both Joe Pesci and Cathy Moriarty, who each received massive praise for their breakthrough performances.

Although it did not set any box office records upon its debut, the movie was immediately recognized by reviewers as a landmark achievement in American cinema. To ensure the role felt completely authentic, the actor committed to a massive physical change, gaining 60 pounds to portray the boxer during his later, less athletic years.

This transformation created a stark visual divide between the character’s earlier years as a sculpted fighter and his bloated, defeated later stage. Achieving this shift required a deliberate and excessive diet that left the star feeling quite physically ill throughout the process.

He discussed the taxing nature of this weight gain in an interview with Playboy magazine. “At first, it was fun. I ate ice cream and everything I wanted—it’s like part of the fantasy that one has about eating everything.

I took a tour through France, from Paris to the Riviera, stayed in inns, and ate. And for two weeks, I was miserable because as good as the food was, it’s rich — you could eat only one big meal a day and then lie there, digesting it.”

The process became significantly more difficult as he neared his target weight. “But I’ll never, ever eat like that again — it gets boring, it’s tiring, and I did it in a fast way. I felt terrible.

After 15 to 20 pounds, it was hard work. I had to get up early to eat a full breakfast and digest that in order to eat a full lunch and digest that in order to eat a full dinner. And lots of Di-Gel or Tums.”

He explained that his choice to avoid prosthetics was born from a deep curiosity about the character’s psychological and physical decay. “I didn’t want to do it with just make-up. I wanted to really do it so you could see his stomach.

So I thought, Let me try this as an experiment. I said, ‘Shut down the production.’ Marty and I planned it. There was something about Jake — he was a young fighter, and then he let himself go, and it was so sad, in a way. To see that deterioration and to capture it on film was really interesting to me.”

Robert De Niro remains one of the most accomplished and influential actors in the history of cinema, with a career featuring legendary titles like The Godfather Part II, Taxi Driver, and Goodfellas.

His partnership with Scorsese has lasted over five decades, with their most recent collaboration being the 2023 historical epic Killers of the Flower Moon. De Niro has remained incredibly busy throughout the year, currently working on a high-stakes thriller directed by David O. Russell that is set to wrap production late this spring.

Raging Bull is frequently studied in film schools and has been preserved by the National Film Registry due to its cultural and historical significance. The performances within the film set a new standard for method acting and intense, character-driven storytelling.

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