40 Celebrities Who've Shaved Their Heads for Roles

Every once in a while, a role demands a little something extra from an actor — like shaving off all their hair. Most of the time, there's a talented star willing to rise to the challenge. In case you needed any inspiration to go for a close-crop (or shorter) this summer, we've rounded up 40 stars who grabbed the clippers to get into character.

Christian Bale for American Hustle

Yes, Christian Bale is supporting a very bad head of hair here. But for his role in American Hustle, the actor decided to shave his head so the makeup department could add a bad toupee every day of filming.

Natalie Portman for V for Vendetta

Natalie Portman temporarily sacrificed her signature long brunette locks for a starring role in V for Vendetta. The actress ended up getting the super short buzz on camera while filming a dramatic torture scene.

James McAvoy for X-Men: First Class

James McAvoy first shaved his head in 2011 for the role of Professor X in X-Men: First Class. The actor surrendered his hair again for a role in the 2017 movie Split (and its sequel, Glass).

Joey King for The Act

In order to snag the role of Gypsy Blanchard in the biopic series The Act, Joey King had to agree to shave her head. Even after filming wrapped, King said she enjoyed the shorter chop and "kind of want[ed] to keep it."

Joseph Gordon-Levitt for 50/50

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is known for being committed to the role. So when he starred in 50/50, a film about a guy struggling with a cancer diagnosis, the actor shaved his head on camera for a memorable scene.

Kate Hudson for Music

When it was recommended that Kate Hudson shave her head for her role in Music, the actress fully embraced the challenge. Hudson traded her blonde waves for a brunette buzz cut in 2017.

Charlize Theron for Mad Max: Fury Road

When Charlize Theron took on the role of Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road, the South African actress decided to take hair and makeup into her own hands. Theron recently shared a throwback video of her buzzing her blonde locks in preparation for the role.

Natalie Dormer for The Hunger Games

It wasn't just her acting chops that snagged Natalie Dormer a role in The Hunger Games — it was also her willingness to part with her hair. (Or, at least half of her hair.) The actress shaved the side of her head for an edgy look to play Cressida in the action film.

Demi Moore for G.I. Jane

Demi Moore made waves with a buzz cut in G.I. Jane, a look that soon became one of the most iconic '90s hairstyles. Decades later, Moore's daughter Tallulah Willis decided to replicate her mother's famous 'do with a similar buzz cut.

Cara Delevingne for Life in a Year

Cara Delevingne proved she was committed to her role in Life in a Year when she debuted a shiny head in 2017. The model/actress would keep her hair closely cropped for a short period after the filming the drama, in which she played a woman with cancer left with one year to live.

Anne Hathaway for Les Misérables

While shaving your head for a role can feel like a big sacrifice, it usually pays off — just ask Anne Hathaway. The actress took home the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Les Misérables after she received her rough chop on camera.

Matt Damon for Elysium

Matt Damon took on an intense action role — and a shiny bald head — in the film Elysium. And honestly, it suited him so well that he should consider rocking a shaved head full-time.

Kristen Stewart for Underwater

Kristen Stewart's decision to shave her head for her role in Underwater was entirely based on practicality. The actress explained that she volunteered for the chop because her character's costume involved a lot of helmets, making a buzz cut easier to deal with during filming. "I mean, I'm not going to be able to have touch-ups once I put the helmet on, so I must shave my head," she told The Today Show.

Tom Hardy for The Dark Knight Rises

Tom Hardy sported a clean-shaven head while filming The Dark Knight Rises. The look was essential to his character, the evil villain Bane, in the Batman series.

Amandla Stenberg for When Hands Touch

While Amandla Stenberg was known for her hair, the actress was excited to try out a buzzcut for her role as Leyna in When Hands Touch.

Keanu Reeves for Speed

Back in 1993, Keanu Reeves had some of the floppiest hair in Hollywood. So, it was a big deal when the actor shaved his head down to the bare minimum for his role in Speed.

Jake Gyllenhaal for Jarhead

Who can forget Jake Gyllenhaal's buzzcut phase in 2005? Not us. But the actor didn't try out the hairstyle just for kicks — it was for his role as a solider in Jarhead.

Olivia Cooke for Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Olivia Cooke committed to the role of a leukemia patient in Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by shaving off her auburn locks. "It was the best thing I did to get into character and to feel all of the emotions I was supposed to be feeling at the time," Cooke said in a TV interview.

Hugh Jackman for Pan

When Hugh Jackman goes for a role, he really goes for it. The Australian actor paired a shaved head with an elaborate goatee for his role as Blackbeard in Pan.

Karen Gillan for Guardians of the Galaxy

Fans may have figured Karen Gillan was sporting a bald cap under her blue body suit in Guardians of the Galaxy, but no. The actress actually shaved her head for the role and never looked back.

Aaron Paul for Breaking Bad

It would almost feel strange to see Aaron Paul without his almost-bald head from Breaking Bad. Though it became a signature look, the actor only shaved his head while filming the hit TV show.

Bryan Cranston for Breaking Bad

Same goes for this Breaking Bad star. In order to create the Walter White look, Bryan Cranston had to grow out a goatee and shave his head completely. The dramatic change in style did help distance Cranston from his previous role of Hal in Malcolm in the Middle.

Cate Blanchett for Heaven

Proving that she is one of Hollywood's most talented chameleons, Cate Blanchett showed off her freshly shaved head after filming the 2002 film, Heaven.

Marlon Brando for Apocalypse Now

Marlon Brando was known for his method acting technique, so it is no surprise the actor fully went for it and shaved his head in Apocalypse Now.

Sigourney Weaver for Aliens 3

When Sigourney Weaver reprised her role as Ellen Ripley in Aliens 3, her character was seen with a bold new shaved head. However, in order to pull it off, the actress sported the look in real life.

Tilda Swinton for Doctor Strange

Doctor Strange had a lot of controversy around its casting choices. However, no one could deny Tilda Swinton's dedication to the role when she actually shaved her head in real life to play Ancient One.

Jared Leto for Suicide Squad

Jared Leto shaved his head to a close cropped 'do in order to play the Joker in Suicide Squad. (The actor also buzzed off his eyebrows while he was at it.) The role was actually the second in a row that required a dramatic physical transformation, following his Academy Award-winning turn as Rayon in Dallas Buyers Club.

Timothy Olyphant for Hitman

In order to play Agent 47 properly in Hitman, Timothy Olyphant debuted a shaved head in the 2007 film.

Sanaa Lathan for Nappily Ever After

Sanaa Lathan decided to shave her head in real life (and on camera) for her film Nappily Ever After. For the actress, the choice was easy. "The more I did research into the themes of the movie and the character, I was like 'I can't not do it'," Lathan said on LIVE Kelly and Ryan.

Bruce Willis for Unbreakable

Years before Bruce Willis began sporting the bald look for real — yes, there was a time when Willis had actual hair — the actor decided to shave his head for his role in Unbreakable. Perhaps, this is what convinced him to permanently ditch his locks?

Rupert Friend for Hitman: Agent 47

Rupert Friend looked striking different when he buzzed off his long strands for his role in Hitman: Agent 47. The hairstyle was essential to his character in the action thriller (a reboot of 2007's Hitman) so Friend decided to try the bold look for real.

Millie Bobby Brown for Stranger Things

Millie Bobby Brown was only 12 years old when she chopped off her hair to play Eleven in Stranger Things. The decision ended up being the best thing for the young actress, whose career exploded due to the role. She later described the experience as "the most empowering moment of my whole life," on Instagram.

Jeff Bridges for Iron Man

We're used to seeing Jeff Bridges with a full head of long silver locks, so it was startling when the actor revealed a shaved header when he took on the role of Obadiah Stane. However, he did keep the beard.

Tom Cruise for Minority Report

It's a huge moment in Minority Report when Tom Cruise's character reveals his shaven head — and a bald cap just wouldn't do. So, Cruise decided to shave his head in real life.

Toni Collette for Miss You Already

Toni Collette opted to shave her head to get into the role of a cancer patient in Miss You Already.

James Franco for Zeroville

James Franco is hardly recognizable with a clean-shaven head, mustache and sunglasses at the Venice Film Festival. While the actor was in character at the red carpet event in order to film a scene, his bald head was 100% real.

Matthew McConaughey for Reign of Fire

After starring in a string of romantic comedies, Matthew McConaughey decided to do something that would shock fans. The actor shaved off his blonde curls for the 2002 film Reign of Fire.

Riz Ahmed for The Night Of

It wasn't until halfway through 2016's The Night Of that we saw Riz Ahmed sporting a shaved head. However, it wasn't just his character who got the new hairstyle. Ahmed would later reprise the shaved look in 2020 in his personal life — it was a quarantine haircut.

Antonio Banderas for Autómata

Antonio Banderas shaved his head and his eyebrows for his role in the 2014 Spanish action film, Autómata.

Daniel Radcliffe for Imperium

Daniel Radcliffe starred as an FBI agent who goes undercover with a shaved head in the film Imperium. Being the dutiful actor he is, Radcliffe really did buzz his hair in the scene for the movie.

From: Men's Health US