Orlando Bloom & John Turturro Talk Intense Training and Diet for Boxing Movie The Cut | Interview

Photo Credit: Republic Pictures

ComingSoon Senior Editor Brandon Schreur spoke to Orlando Bloom and John Turturro about the new psychological thriller movie The Cut. The two of them discussed the intense training Bloom went through to prepare for the part, how Turturro changed how his character was originally written, and more.

“After a career-ending defeat, a former champion trains for redemption – but as obsession takes hold and reality unravels, he may be spiraling into something far more terrifying,” the synopsis for the movie reads.

The Cut will be released in United States theaters on September 5, 2025, from Republic Pictures.

Brandon Schreur: Orlando, you give an incredible performance in this movie. I’d love to ask about the physicality of it all, just because it seems like a really demanding role to have to play. The whole point is this guy is being pushed beyond his limit, and we sure see him go beyond any limit. What did it look like from your end, both from a physical standpoint to train for this role, but also for a mental one? Was it hard to get into the headspace of this guy when he’s really going through it?

Orlando Bloom: [Laughs] Yeah, in some ways, it was almost like no acting required. I was hangry and hungry so much the entire time that it was a lot. I worked with this great nutritionist in LA who had previously, I’d been told, worked with Christian Bale on some stuff. He was very good at what he did. He tiered me down from three meals a day to two to one to, finally, I was just eating tuna and cucumber for what felt like weeks on end.

I think the one surprising aspect was how much it did affect the old noggin. The intrusive thoughts, the paranoia, and all the things that you sort of imbue and see in boxers. The lengths that somebody will go to for that second shot, that second chance at a title, or in life, really. I think the movie is so much more. He’s just desperate for that one more shot at the title, yeah?

Yeah, totally. And it’s kind of tough to watch your character go through it all. He’s struggling, and there’s a lot to take in. But I loved the journey and think it turned out so good. John, you’re super great in this movie, too. Can you tell me a little bit about how you approached this guy? He comes off as being so cold and menacing all of the time, but he has this way of seducing Orlando’s character. How did you get into the headspace of this guy for such a chilling performance like that?

John Turturro: Well, you know, there was a well-written script, and I had Orlando right in front of me doing everything that he was doing to himself. Really, sometimes acting is dependent on your partner, you know? And your partner does a lot of your performance. He was right there, and the script was really good.

A lot of these people are failed trainers, failed fighters, or whatever. There are a lot of these kinds of people in sports. There is. In all different sports. They’re kind of parasitical, in a way. They’re there to help give them an advantage, to lose weight, to gain weight, or whatever. It is something that exists in a lot of sports. And these people make a living off someone like Orlando. So they’re almost stuck together. Caitríona [Balfe] was great to work with, but it was right in front of me. And he put himself through so much that you believe it.

Bloom: John’s so generous. He said to me, during the filming, ‘I see what you’re doing. It’s beautiful. And, remember, it’s love.’ I remember you saying that to me, John. It’s all love. John’s character was written as sort of a drill sergeant. It was a bit more Whiplash in tone, the way J. K. Simmons was. John came in, and literally everyone on the set, just their chins dropped to the floor. He brought, like, this seduction to the whole piece. 

Caitríona Balfe, who is wonderful, plays my life and training partner. He seduces me out with love. And sees me, he sees what the trauma of that character is. As John says, many of these sports personalities and sportsmen, especially for pugilists, they are an interesting group of people. That’s where we got the character from. And he just brought love to this story. It’s sort of almost like a triangle, a love triangle, that becomes sort of toxic in its way.

A scary love triangle.

Turturro: Yeah, it’s a scary love triangle. You don’t want to be in that love triangle.

Bloom: No, when I say love triangle, I mean mentally.

That leads into what I wanted to ask you guys next — this is a fictional story, but like you guys have said, weight-cutting is a real thing. This kind of thing happens in real life when it comes to sports. When you’re approaching these roles, did you talk to real boxers and real trainers to make sure you got this right and really knew what you’re doing?

Turturro: I thought it was all in the script. I’m a big sports fan, so I read a lot of different things about different people and watched documentaries. I didn’t actually talk to any particular person, this time, but I thought it was so realized, dramaturgically. I like [director Sean Ellis] a lot; I admire his films. I like Orlando a lot, and Caitríona. I thought it’d be a great combo.

Bloom: I worked with some trainers — I was sort of training for about five months. I have the most respect for boxers. It’s an art form, it’s a true art form. You watch it as a paying viewer from the public, you watch fighting, and it doesn’t look very complicated. But it’s years of dedication. These combinations — I mean, I did a couple of rounds. I sparred a little bit. When you take a punch, it’s really challenging for your head. So I have a whole new respect for fighters, period, end of story.

But I worked with a great trainer in LA, he’s worked with some fantastic fighters as well. And then I came to the UK and worked with a young guy, Norbert, who is actually a fighter who does mixed martial arts, but obviously knew a lot about boxing. There were a handful of people, but again, as John said. I love the boxing genre of films, and I think what’s so cool is that there’s this fresh take on this. We call it the cut because it’s obviously about cutting weight. It’s not really about the fight; the fight is in the head. It all happens up here, as Boxer says. Then Boz gets in his head, and in a way, all these characters are part of Boxer’s character. They’re all mirrors of him, in some way, and it feels very kind of dream-like. You’re not sure what’s what.

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Thanks to Orlando Bloom and John Turturro for taking the time to discuss The Cut.

The post Orlando Bloom & John Turturro Talk Intense Training and Diet for Boxing Movie The Cut | Interview appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More.