I lived like a monk: Hugh Jackman

Los Angeles: Actor Hugh Jackman says he "lived like a monk" to prepare for his role as Jean Valjean in ‘Les Miserables’.

The 44-year-old takes on the role of Jean Valjean, a convict who manages to turn his life around in Tom Hooper`s big-screen adaptation of the hit musical. "The director told me `I need you to get to where your friends stop you and ask, `Are you OK? Are you sick?`. Until you get to that point you haven`t gone far enough`. It took me to places I`ve never been before, vocally, physically, emotionally," femalefirst.co.uk quoted Jackman as saying. "I told my wife, `This may be too much for me`. She replied, `It will probably demand more of you than anything you`ve done so it should feel frightening and uncomfortable`. She told me, `Use the fear. Work harder. Get in there.` I shaved my head, had to lose more than two stone in weight and lived like a monk, nursing my vocal cords with a portable steam machine and avoiding dairy products," he added. IANS