How Jeremy Allen White and Zac Efron Got Shredded for 'The Iron Claw'

Exciting things are happening these days in the worlds of Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White.

Not only is White one of the most loved actors in television at the moment thanks to his damn good work on "The Bear," but he nearly broke the internet this week when Calvin Klein unveiled a new ad campaign featuring the actor looking delicious in their iconic briefs.

And as far as Zac Efron goes, not only did the former tween star just land a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but his performance in "The Iron Claw" is garnering some late (but loud) Oscar buzz.

In "The Iron Claw," Efron and White star as the Von Erichs, real life brothers who made history in the bonkers world of professional wrestling in the 1980s. Of course, given that it's a film about wrestling – and that both men are in various stages of undress throughout – the hunky actors had to get in the best shape of their lives.

The pair of actors recently chatted with Entertainment Weekly about the film and the transformation they underwent to for it.

According to EW, they trained with pro wrestler Chavo Guerrero Jr. and spent months in the gym before filming even started, all the while also learning actual wrestling moves and terminology.

"We have some pretty funny iPhone footage of us seeing our wrestling for the first time," Efron revealed. "I was like, 'Oh, that's what it looks like,'" White added. "Got some work to do."

In addition to getting into shape and drilling wrestling moves like the titular "iron claw," Efron and White had some serious bulking up to do, which they did by consuming thousands of calories a day to pack on the muscle.

"I was just eating frozen turkey patties and avocados and protein shakes and waffles and almond butter," White said. And when the cast went out to dinner together, their tables were often piled high with food – sometimes free – given that White was frequently recognized because of his restaurant-centric role in "The Bear."

To shed more light on Efron's insane amount of bulking for the film, British GQ spoke to Farren Morgan, a personal trainer, who founded The Tactical Athlete training method.

"Bulking is a widely used term in fitness for those that have decided to increase their caloric intake and combine this calorie surplus with intensive weight training to increase their muscle mass and strength," explained Morgan.

To be clear, there's a difference between bulking up your body and getting completely ripped. Bulking, Morgan explained to GQ, is only the first step in the process. After bulking, cutting must come next, which reduces overall body fat, revealing the bulked-up muscle underneath. And, of course, the final phase in all this is maintenance.