When Chris Pratt was cast as Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy, the doughy Parks and Recreation star stopped drinking “too much” beer and got ridiculously ripped. For better (for him) or worse (for those of us who miss Fat Pratt), his new, chiseled physique led to further roles in Jurassic World and Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. It’s a near-requirement these days for franchise movie stars to be impressively buff — 1997’s Men in Black had Tommy Lee Jones; 2019’s Men in Black International had Chris Hemsworth — and the latest success story of this muscular trend is Kumail Nanjiani.
Like Pratt, he’s now part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (he plays Kingo Sunen in the upcoming The Eternals alongside Angelina Jolie), and also like Pratt, he’s now jacked.
“I never thought I’d be one of those people who would post a thirsty shirtless, but I’ve worked way too hard for way too long so here we are. You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain,” the Silicon Valley star wrote on Instagram. “I found out a year ago I was going to be in Marvel’s Eternals and decided I wanted to transform how I looked. I would not have been able to do this if I didn’t have a full year with the best trainers and nutritionists paid for by the biggest studio in the world.”
Nanjiani also thanked everyone who’s helped him transform his body, and saved a special acknowledgement for his wife, The Big Sick co-writer Emily V. Gordon, who “[put] up with me complaining and talking about only working out and dieting for the last year.”
I believe Russ Hanneman put it best.
(Via Instagram)
