Here’s What Jennifer Aniston Did to Gain Weight for Her Character in the Movie ‘Cake'

Jennifer Aniston takes up the difficult role of Claire Simmons in the 2014 movie Cake in an impressive show of commitment to her work. The renowned actress, famous for her enviable figure, began a transformative journey to accurately depict a woman suffering from chronic pain after a tragic car accident. Beyond her emotive portrayal, Jennifer demonstrated her dedication to the part by outlining the measures she took to put on weight and really inhabit the part.

Unquestionably dedicated to her craft, Aniston went above and beyond to give Claire Simmons the authenticity she needed in Cake. In a Q&A session following a showing at the American Cinematheque, Aniston discussed how she put on weight for the part. The actress admitted that for almost two and a half months, she gave up exercising and loosened her eating habits. She was able to do this while maintaining her health, shedding her typically toned physique and embracing a bigger form that fit Claire's personality.

“I knew that was coming,” she said to the fan who inquired about her weight gain for the role, per Just Jared. “I basically just didn’t work out for two-and-a-half months. I stopped working out and I stopped being as careful about my diet as I normally am. I was still healthy, but I’d allow more.” 

Claire Simmons wasn't an easy character for Aniston to portray. The actress had to go deeply into the emotional psyche of someone going through such agony in order to portray the character's journey of pain and suffering. Understanding the specifics of the accident and Claire's injuries was emphasized by Aniston. She was able to perfect Claire's speech cadence and lower her own voice into the character's body by losing herself in the character's suffering and vulnerability, reports US Weekly.

She said, “There’s a level of fearlessness. I think that you have to be able to sort of go, ‘F–k it, I’m ready to just disappear.' First it was just understanding the logistics of what the accident was — where did the pain exist, what was the injury,” Aniston revealed. Following this, it was about mastering “the cadence of [the character’s] voice, lowering the voice into her body,” she added. “Because I can tend to be up here.”

With the exception of subtle shading to draw attention to the dark circles under her eyes, Aniston decided to be entirely makeup-free on camera for Cake in an effort to be more real. The bare-faced appearance, according to Aniston, was "refreshing" and gave her the freedom to act with more fearlessness. 

She explained, “There was a big concern with the scars…We did a lot of experimenting and we had an extraordinary makeup artist make these scars for us. We did some trials, some scar test days. Oh, if you could have seen some of the pictures, it looked like Chainsaw Massacre kind of stuff, you know? Like Freddy Kruger,” she said. “And by the end, I didn’t even notice they were there."

References:

https://ewwfeed.com/celebrity/jennifer-aniston-dishes-on-how-she-gained-weight-for-cake/

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-body/news/jennifer-aniston-talking-about-cake-20142011/

https://www.justjared.com/2014/11/22/jennifer-aniston-dishes-on-how-she-gained-weight-for-cake/