UNTIL RECENTLY, Nicholas Galitzine had likely never been the most physically imposing person in any room he’d been in. Now, he’d be the biggest guy in most rooms.
Galitzine has packed on a tonne of muscle to play He-Man in upcoming film Masters of the Universe. To embody the famously ripped comic book character, Galitzine had to bulk up long before he got to set. The result is a new physique that has left the actor, who was previously known as a heartthrob from romance films, looking unrecognisable.
If you first came across Galitzine in The Idea of You or Red, White & Royal Blue, you might struggle to recognise him since his transformation. He looks significantly bigger and stronger, with broad shoulders, a wide chest and toned arms.
So, how did Galitzine do it? How did he go from a good looking love interest to a hulking action star? Here’s everything we know.
Everything Nicholas Galitzine did to build muscle for 'Masters of the Universe'
“We started out really trying to pack on as much size as possible,” Galitzine told E! News. “You know, having up to 5,000 calories sometimes, weightlifting for three hours a day and then we streamlined it.”
There were no days off training. “It was an every day a week thing,” he said. “So, you’re shooting a scene. They say, ‘You have 10 minutes until the next set up,’ you run outside, you hop on the assault bike, run back in, shoot a scene again, and that kind of goes on for about five months.”
In an interview with W Magazine, Galitzine described his eating habits while in the bulking phase for the film. “I’m eating about 4,000 calories a day, but the amount of physical work I’m doing, you end up hungry at the end of the day,” he said. “I will eventually go into what’s called the cutting phase, where I’m going to be starved and so rude to everyone. I can only apologise for the person I’m going to become in a few months’ time.”
On Fandango’s ‘Big Ticket podcast’, Galitzine dug deeper into what the transformation required during the cutting phase. “There were moments where I would be fasted for 18 hours and doing a three-hour weight session while fasted and then going and doing stunts right after,” he said. “It would test your resolve. It kind of built character in a real way.”
The physical transformation did take a mental toll. Galitzine told People that it was “the hardest thing I’ve ever done”, and that “it was a daily challenge”. He also admitted that he experienced “body dysmorphia” as he gained muscle. “You don’t recognise yourself, you don’t fit in any of your clothes anymore.”
That said, he also found the challenge to be galvanising. “There is something incredibly empowering about committing to something so heavily,” he said. “I’ve never had a challenge like that before, which really every single day you have to wake up and you can see the peak of the mountain vaguely, but especially when you’re bulking. I think it would be insincere for me to say that it was easy.”
Will this muscled-up look be sticking around? Not according to Galitzine, who says it’s “Not something I’d be keen to do or maintain all year round.”
Assessing Nicholas Galitzine's muscle-building strategies
Did Galitzine go about preparing to play He-Man the right way? Lets assess. He mentions fasting for 18 hours before going into intense training sessions during the cutting phase. While intermittent fasting has become increasingly popular, most experts would agree that combining an 18-hour fast with a three-hour weight session and stunt work is an extreme approach – especially for someone trying to build muscle.
The effectiveness of resistance training is heavily influenced by glycogen availability. After prolonged fasting, the body’s carbohydrate stores are depleted. That can compromise output and intensity, while impairing recovery, all of which are key drivers of hypertrophy. Research also suggests that consuming protein before and after resistance training helps maximise muscle protein synthesis. This means long fasts are less than ideal for anyone whose primary goal is size and strength.
If you’re trying to lose weight, fasting before a workout is fine. But if you’re trying to maintain muscle at the same time like Galitzine, it’s not the best approach. However, it’s hard to argue with Galitzine’s results.
