Tom Hardy was a "mess" after filming 'Bronson'.

The actor had to gain a lot of weight to portray serial killer Charles Bronson in the 2008 and while he had fun doing it, he admits he was in the worst shape of his life once filming stopped.

He said: "I was a mess after 'Bronson'. I got really fat. I was a real road crash. So my personal trainer friend Pnut had the problem of getting the rust off me. By the time I went to Pittsburgh to film 'Warrior' I had two hours of boxing, two hours of muay thai, two hours of jiu jitsu, two hours of choreography and two hours of weight lifting a day, every day for eight weeks. I don't know how people do that every day.

"'Bronson' was fun. For 'Bronson' I just ate chocolate and pizza, lifted Pnut up and down the stairs, played XBOX, shaved my head and grew a moustache."

Despite being famous for playing hard men roles in movies such as 'Inception', 'Bronson' and 'Warrior', Tom recently claimed he is a big "softie"

The actor - who is engaged to actress Charlotte Riley and has a three-year-old son Louis from a previous relationship - said: "There is a softie within me, you know, I'm someone's dad, I have a three year old who means the world to me. I really just want to be with my missus and my son and my dog and do films and be Left Alone."