Miles Teller says Providence boxer Vinny Pazienza told him to ‘stuff a banana in ya undies’ in ‘Bleed for This’
“Don’t eff up my reputation, kid.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez1o4NcC7pY
Miles Teller underwent a grueling physical transformation to play Providence boxer Vinny “The Pazmanian Devil” Pazienza in the upcoming film Bleed for This, losing 20 pounds and then gaining 15 back to emulate the career of a man who successfully won titles in three different weight classes during a career nearly derailed by a horrific car accident in 1991.
But on Thursday’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Teller told Kimmel that there was one physical aspect in particular that Pazienza wanted to make sure Teller got right on screen.
Kimmel kicked off his segment with Teller by showing a clip from the film in which Teller strips down to leopard-print underwear to just barely make weight at 140 pounds. When Kimmel asked him about the scene, Teller told him that Pazienza sent him a message prior to filming.
“It was a signed photo of him in his boxers,” Teller said. “And it said, ‘Miles, stuff a banana in ya undies if ya have to make it look bigger. Don’t eff up my reputation, kid. Seriously, much love, Paz.’”
Teller also said that the comeback story of Paz — who returned to the ring only 13 months after doctors told him he may never walk again — was so unbelievable that they had to fudge the timeline a bit to make it seem more realistic.
“Vinny actually started working out five days after breaking his neck,” Teller told Kimmel. “We didn’t think that was believable, so in our movie it makes it seem like it happened a month later.”
Bleed For This is set to hit theaters November 18.
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