Simon Pegg shocked fans with his ripped physique in an insane body transformation as he celebrated 16 years being sober. The Hot Fuzz star recalled the dark times when he drank heavily on Hollywood trips, admitting he "would be dead" had he not checked into a rehabilitation facility.
His new appearance is different to to how fans used to see him in comedy flicks like Shaun of the Dead, or Run Fatboy Run. The 56-year-old said quitting drinking helped him get back in shape. Simon checked in to The Priory in 2010, a private mental health care and addiction rehabilitation service, whose flagship hospital in Roehampton is best known for treating celebrities.
Simon did not let the world know about his alcoholism until 2018 and he said: "Going through pain can be very lonely. I was someone people thought was superficially all right, but was not all right and that can make people think, 'Oh everyone feels like this - not just me'."
In an interview with The Sunday Times, he said: "There was something positive about just looking after myself, and I love working out because it gets endorphins flowing and gives me a routine.
"The guys that were 56 when I was a kid seemed like my f***ing grandad, and I just want to live for a long time. Because, you know what? I like life."
Simon gained fame from the unofficial Shaun of the Dead trilogy and he scored a big role in Hollywood movies like the Star Trek and Mission: Impossible franchises. He realised that he would still be an alcoholic if he wasn't famous.
He explained: "Fame didn't cause it [alcohol addiction], it might have exacerbated it at times and throw it into sharper relief but, no, it was in me before and just happened slightly in public rather than in private."
In 2019, he took on a six-month fitness routine with Hertfordshire-based trainer Nick Lower to prepare for his role as a hostage victim in thriller-mystery film, Inheritance. Despite dropping from 12st to 10st, he admitted that losing the weight was incredibly difficult and he does not encourage people to follow such a drastic method.
He added that this intense training involved a daily 10km run, circuits and strength workouts.
