Shailene Woodley, 26, is one tough actress who is dedicated to her craft. In order to prepare for her role in Adrift as Tami Oldham Ashcroft — a sailor lost at sea with barely any food or way out — she lived off 350 calories for part of filming! “I can’t sleep when I’m hungry, so I would have a glass of wine to basically pass the f–k out,” Woodley admitted during an interview with The Times on June 28. “For the last two weeks I had a can of salmon, some steamed broccoli and two egg yolks every day.”
Woodley stars alongside British actor, Sam Claflin in the film, who plays her boyfriend, Richard Sharp. “I don’t know that I could do it without Sam,” Woodley confessed. “We both really were there for one another in our moments of extreme exhaustion and hunger.” For her role as real-life sailor, Tami Oldham Ashcraft, Woodley tried to emulate what Ashcraft went through while lost at sea for 41-days. The actress said in order to maintain the strict diet, she would eat the minimal amount of food and skipped dinner, but it wasn’t easy.
In another interview the actress described the long, draining hours she worked with her British co-star. “We were working extremely long hours out on the open sea. Sam and I were losing quite a bit of weight as we weren’t eating much,” she told The New Paper. “So not having the fuel to run you physically, along with the emotional complexities that were incredibly taxing at times, mixed with the physicality, it could have been a grueling experience.”
Shailene Woodley and Sam Claflin in “Adrift,” in theaters now.
Adrift is a film based on the inspiring true story of two sailors who set out to journey across the ocean from Tahiti to San Diego. Tami Oldham, played by Woodley and Richard Sharp (Claflin) sail directly into one of the most catastrophic hurricanes in recorded history on their love journey. In the aftermath of the storm, Tami wakes up to find Richard brutally hurt with broken ribs and a leg injury. Their boat is ruined, and Tami is forced to takes things into her own hands to survive. With no hope for rescue as they’re off the grid in the middle of the ocean, Tami must find the strength to save herself and the only man she has ever loved.
