Dave Bautista on his weight loss journey: The more I trimmed down the better I looked on camera

Los Angeles: Hollywood star and former WWE wrestler Dave Bautista says he went through a weight loss journey as he doesn't want to look different next to his co-stars while working on a film.

Bautista recalled how he had to maintain particular weight while filming the 2023 horror action "Knock at the Cabin".

"I started trimming down because I got really big for a role. Uncomfortably big. For 'Knock at the Cabin' I got really big. I was around 315 pounds…I put the weight on really fast and I put on an uncomfortable amount of weight and it took forever to shed it out," he told Chris Van Vlieti in an interview.

The 55-year-old actor decided to shed the weight as he realised that it enhanced how he appeared on-screen. He also mentioned that his natural appearance anyway makes him distinct on-screen but when he had more weight it was rather "distracting".

"The more I trimmed down the better I looked on camera and the better I looked next to other actors. I’m still a large human being. At 6’4 and 240 pounds next to your typical actor, I look like a gorilla and it’s distracting. I’ll probably lose a few more pounds. I’m just killing myself to be this trim. I’m training hard," he said.

Bautista began his wrestling career in 1999 and signed with WWE in 2000. He rose to fame in 2002 and went on to become one of the best wrestlers until his retirement in 2019.

In 2006, Bautista made his acting debut with Greg Glienna's comedy film "Relative Strangers" and had his breakthrough in 2014 with his role in "Guardians of the Galaxy".

He has been a part of several projects including "My Spy", "Dune: Part Two" and "The Last Showgirl". His latest work is action comedy "The Killer's Game" (2024). Directed by J. J. Perry, the film is based on the Jay Bonansinga's publication.