You’ve gained and lost a lot of weight for roles. Do ladies tend to prefer you leaner or heavier?
It’s funny—I read that women look to chiseled-faced guys for one-night stands, and to round-faced guys for marriage. When I’m rounder in the face, I like to say, “This is my long-term look.” Or “This is my wife-and-kids look right here.”

What’s something you love in a woman?
Brains. That’s why we’ve got Olivia Wilde in this world. [Sex appeal] is nothing physical whatsoever. It’s the mind and where that goes, the sense of humor. Everything else is just…whatever.

If you’re interested in a woman, how likely are you to ask her out?
I always joke that it’s hard to travel on subways. You see a woman, and you fall in love. And then she gets out, and she walks away, and everything’s done. I’m not good at chatting right away. Women have to be very patient with me, I suppose.

So an assertive woman doesn’t turn you off?
I’m not turned off by it. I’m sort of helped by it, endeared by it. It’s sweet. But I’m not trying to find myself in any relationship right now. I want to give 100 percent to it, and I can’t do that at the moment.

Source

Garrett Hedlund had a promising start in Hollywood when he landed his first film role at age 19 as Brad Pitt’s cousin in Troy, and while supporting parts in notable movies like Friday Night Lights and Four Brothersfollowed, he had trouble making the leap to leading man. That’s all about to change, as he he’s toplining two high-profile films about to open — Joseph Kosinski’s effects-laden Tron: Legacy, where he plays the son of Jeff Bridges, and Country Strong, where he stars as a country singer opposite Gwyneth Paltrow — and shooting an impressive follow-up, the Walter Salles adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road (Hedlund plays Dean Moriarty in a cast that includes Kristen Stewart and Amy Adams). On the eve of his big profile boost, Hedlund talked to Vulture about scary fans and singing karaoke to win roles.

When a lot of actors watch themselves onscreen, they mostly remember the actual reality of what shooting was like that day. Since so much of the Tronworld is built in the computer, I would think that watching it would be a wholly different experience.
I don’t know how to describe it yet. There’s nothing that compares to it, for me, and I think that’s the best thing about it. When I was watching it for the first time, I had a couple pals with me and part of me wanted to rattle off fun facts: “Oh, that scene was at five in the morning!” But seeing this world added into that, it’s just incredible what they’ve done.

I read that when you went in for your first role in Troy, in order to give yourself the confidence you needed, you walked into that room like you were already on the same level as Wolfgang Petersen and Brad Pitt. My question to you is, have you sustained that? Do you always go in the room and feel that sense of sureness?
It depends on the part, I guess. Socially, I am who I am, but in terms of that film, a percentage of bravery had to radiate off the character. I knew it was a big part that a lot of people were going for at the time, and there were actors who’d done a lot more than I had — I hadn’t even filmed a movie yet! So there was that acknowledgment that if you want to get in a film with A-list actors, you have to pretend you are one.

The Tron role must have been pretty coveted, too: a 27-year-old white guy leading a $200 million movie? You probably had a lot of competition.
Yeah, I met with Joe early on and read for them, and a couple of months went on where they wanted me to come back and test read with Olivia Wilde in early November of ’08. It was a long one, but man.

You’ve had sizable roles in big movies before, but this was your first flat-out, undisputed, I’m-on-the-poster lead. Did it feel different?
I wasn’t really thinking of the pressures. It comes when it does, I guess, but I’d never done a film where I was in there all day, every day on set. I’d always had the supporting role where I was trying to write my role a little bigger between scenes — I’d be in the trailer trying to add subtext to what I’d say before and after. So for me to be there all day on Tron, I mean, Jesus! What a lesson.

When you’re acting opposite Jeff Bridges as the de-aged Clu, what were you actually acting opposite?
He would have the laser-rig headset with all the dots on it. We’d rehearse the scene, and then when he was finished setting up all that stuff, we’d set up the cameras and start actually shooting.

Was that the most difficult part of the performance, making sure the technical aspects were perfect?
Yeah, I suppose so. I mean, the technical aspects and the precision to everything, it’s all so precise — Joe’s got a very specific vision. To get to that perfection takes some time, especially dealing with the 3-D cameras, because you’ve got to sync the right eye with the left eye before every single thing. It’s not just grabbing the camera, going over there, and saying, “Let’s shoot.”

The director of Country Strong has said that before you won the role, you two went out for karaoke and you sang Pearl Jam. Is Pearl Jam one of your go-to bands for karaoke?
[Laughs.] I don’t really have many go-to songs I’m able to sing. Yeah, I took her to a karaoke joint and I sang “Better Man” by Pearl Jam. It wasn’t even country! But I’m a huge fan of Eddie Vedder.

How’d you do?
It wasn’t that great by any means. I think she was being very kind in her response to my performance. I thought the place was gonna be packed, you know? And when everybody else is doing great at karaoke, that kind of amps you up, and if you’re doing good, then the crowd feeds off of that and you continue to do better. But this place … the lights were on, and there were, like, three other people in the place. It was rough, man.

Where did you guys go? Like, the Brass Monkey in Koreatown or something?
Yes!

Really?
Yeah! [Laughs.]

What time did you get there, 5 p.m.? That place fills up with old-timers real early.
That’s what I’m sayin’! It was probably around seven or eight, and it was dead empty.

Have you see Gwyneth’s episode of Glee?
I haven’t seen it yet. I’ve never even see Glee yet! I hope to see it, but she’s fantastic, man, so I’m sure it’s fantastic.

How long were you attached to On the Road before it began shooting?
I got cast in September of ’07.

Was there any thought, when you won the Tron part, “Okay, this will help me get my other film made?”
No, I mean … When I was cast then, I wasn’t really going to do anything until we did On the Road, and then after two years of not working, it was just fortunate that I was lucky enough to get a part in Tron. I was basically taking all my coins to Coinstar to be able to eat! But it was hard for me to detach myself from On the Road for a little time because I’d put a lot of work into researching that part, and you’ve gotta tie that kite to a post and hope that when you come back to it, it’s still flying at the same height you left it at. So that was the worry in the back of my mind.

Was there any benefit to having gone off to do Tron, then coming back to the role?
Yeah, now I can’t imagine what it would have been like had I not had these experiences. It was a lot of hard work and determination to put into Tron, in terms of the training and research for it and the long hours and focus, but you realize that your body and mind are able to put that into things. And then on Country Strong, to put six months of work into guitar training and go into the studio to sing and fail in front of people, then to get back up and know that you’ve had a little bit of progress and someone says that you’re actually good for once … moving to Nashville and living that life and actually getting to experience that lifestyle was a huge help to my work ethic. So when it came to On the Road, I realized that my body has a lot of coals in there that I can burn if I find the fire for it.

Which property has the more intimidating fans, Tron or On the Road?
Ha-ha! Goood question. I would say On the Road, but probably because I’m doing that now. There’s a lot of people who say that the book changed their lives — then again, with Tron, there are a lot of people who say that they’re in film today because of Tron! I guess the scale kind of balances a bit in terms of intimidation.

The Minnesota native journeys into the digital frontier in the highly anticipated sci-fi sequel “Tron: Legacy,” opening in theaters today, and channels a young Kris Kristofferson as a soulful singer-songwriter in the musical drama “Country Strong,” to open Jan. 7. He will be seen later in 2011 in “On the Road,” based on beat poet Jack Kerouac’s autobiographical novel.

“Yesterday morning, I was driving across the Bay Bridge in a Hudson. Wrapped (‘On the Road’ in San Francisco) at 11, jumped on a plane to get back here, cut my hair and went straight to the ‘Tron’ premiere,” Hedlund said with a laugh Sunday morning during interviews for “Country Strong” at the Four Seasons Hotel.

Hedlund, 26, made his movie debut in the 2004 Greek myth “Troy.” He played the son of Tim McGraw’s character in the football drama “Friday Night Lights,” sought revenge in the crime film “Four Brothers” and helped bring fantasy novel “Eragon” to the big screen.

“I think he’s going to be one of the new big leading men over the years,” said McGraw, who reunited with Hedlund for “Country Strong.” “He’s a great kid. He’s a really honest kid, and it really comes across on screen.”

With “Tron: Legacy,” Hedlund gets his first leading role, playing the rebellious son of long-lost computer pioneer Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), who is trapped in the video-game world he created.

At the end of the arduous “Tron: Legacy” shoot, he was ready to get real with “Country Strong.”

“It was close to like a 70-day … shoot for ‘Tron,’ onstage in the suit. You can’t even sit down during the day because (of) all the cables that divide the foam rubber and all the electrical circuits. … And your back’s sore. And then being able to just wear some Levi jeans and a button-up, I mean, it was exactly what I wanted.”

He was working on the “Tron” sequel in Vancouver, British Columbia, when he received the “Country Strong” script. He was in tears by the time he read to the end of it.

Writer-director Shana Feste offered Hedlund the lead role of singer-songwriter Beau Hutton, who goes from contentedly playing dive bars to finding country music fame when he gets involved with a superstar (Gwyneth Paltrow) struggling with addiction. Hedlund had to learn to play guitar and sing to fit the part.

“There’s something that a lot of young actors that I’ve met in Hollywood just don’t have. He’s a man; he’s masculine. There’s a lot of boys in Hollywood,” Feste said of casting Hedlund. “I feel like that’s very difficult to find — who is the next movie star … that still has vulnerability and still has heart.”

Hedlund moved to Nashville, Tenn., six weeks before shooting began to immerse himself in the music scene, even playing the legendary Station Inn.

“We get up on stage … and right in front is Gwyneth and Chris Martin and Caleb (Followill), the lead singer of Kings of Leon, and Faith Hill and Dierks Bentley. It was one of the greatest nights of my life.”

Source

Garrett Hedlund wouldn’t be the first actor to be lugged into an interview by a publicist.

But he’s one of the few to then be plugged in and booted up.

“I’d like to apologize I can’t be there,” he says via Skype from Montreal where on this day he’s still filmingOn the Road, an adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s novel that co-stars Kristen Stewart.

That commitment kept him from participating in person during interviews for Tron: Legacy, the sequel he stars in with Jeff Bridges and Olivia Wilde. But that doesn’t mean he can’t promote it (from cyberspace, no less).

In the science-fiction fantasy, opening Friday at 12:01 a.m., he’s Sam Flynn, son of software visionary Kevin Flynn (Bridges), who vanished decades earlier. When he begins to investigate his father’s disappearance, Sam ends up transported into a digital dimension that’s evolved dramatically since 1982′s seminal Tron.

For Hedlund, whose credits include Troy and Friday Night Lights, the movie represents a career breakthrough that brings with it immense pressure. Disney has mortgaged the Mouse House on Tron and much of the franchise’s future rests on his neon-lit shoulders.

“For me it was very, very different. I had never been the one who had to be on set every day, all day,” he says. “(Before) I was always playing a supporting role … This one, the crew, the director, the producer, really become your family because you rely on them to restore your energy, to help you through this. And if you can be enthusiastic, you’re restoring their energy to help them get through this. It’s a teeter-totter.”

Hedlund’s own memories of Tron are limited. No surprise, really, since the 26-year-old wasn’t born when it was released. He eventually saw it in 2003.

“Watching it for the first time, I was amazed by the mind that had created this. ‘What is this guy thinking?’ That’s (Tron director and Tron: Legacy producer) Steven Lisberger. And to see that energetic maniacal Jeff Bridges — my thought was ‘I wish I could have hung out with him.’ He’s this maniacal genius, completely explosive about technology and his creations.”

Little did he suspect a few years later he would be auditioning alongside hundreds of actors to play Bridges’ son.

“Trying to cast the son of Jeff Bridges is such a tricky thing because it’s such a unique blend of qualities that Jeff has,” director Joseph Kosinski says.

“Jeff doesn’t have a son in real life, so there wasn’t anything to compare it to. Garrett just had that combination of laid back confidence, the physicality obviously.”

Says Hedlund, “(Bridges) has always inspired me as an actor. Say a film like The Door in the Floor. I’m just like, man, this guy, he’s the coolest person.”

And there is this bit of serendipity: While Bridges won his Academy Award for portraying a country music crooner in 2009′s Crazy Heart, Hedlund’s next film is Country Strong, in which he plays a rising country star.

It’s a coincidence not lost on Bridges. “We’re both into music. He’s playing a country singer in the movie he’s got coming out. We’d play guitar. And he looks like he could be my kid, too.”

Still, for all this, the reality of Tron didn’t sink in for Hedlund until one pivotal moment. “When you’re getting fitted for the costume,” he says, smiling, “it’s like putting the ring on the finger.”

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Despite roles in high-profile films ‘Troy’ and ‘Four Brothers,’ 26-year-old Garrett Hedlund says he still remains anonymous when walking the streets of L.A.

With a starring role in “TRON: Legacy” and co-starring spot in the upcoming “Country Strong,” Hedlund should prepare himself now for the stalkerazzi and inevitable clusterf**k that will now be his new life.
Disney

The Arizona-via-Minnesota native first gained notice as Patroclus, student of Brad Pitt’s Achilles in “Troy” before landing the role of Jack Mercer in John Singleton’s “Four Brothers.”

Hedlund has since graduated from support characters to Sam Flynn, the “Legacy” lead and son of original “TRON” protagonist Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges). “It was great to see that maniacal, young Jeff [Bridges] running around,” Hedlund said about his first time watching the 1982 original, at age 18. “I so wish I could have hung out with that guy.”

We hung out with Hedlund to get the scoop on his burgeoning career.

What was your first acting gig?
It wasn’t really a gig, but I did a school play for a canned food drive when I was 10 or 11. I got to play the bully in the classroom with a bandana around my head and just kicking the seat in front of me. I remember being in church the next Sunday and this lady saying, “I really enjoyed your performance.” I was dumbfounded.

What would you be doing now if you weren’t acting?
I’m not sure but when I was in Arizona, I worked at McDonald’s and did door-to-door coupon book selling where someone knocks on your door and tries to sell you a pile of paper for $27. In order to sell them, you’d have to come up with a real convincing story depending on if a mother answered the door or a younger couple or whatever. You had prepared speeches for all of them. I think that really helped me in the world of improvisation.

Do people recognize you on the street?
No.

Be honest: Is that a good thing or a bad thing?
It’s a great thing, man. When I go onto a set, people say, “I’m sorry. I haven’t seen you in anything before.” I feel I succeed more out here by not being recognized. You have to hope people enjoy the projects before you start worrying about being recognized on the street.

What was the first thing you bought with your first Hollywood paycheck?
When I got my first project, I was sleeping on a couch and Warner Bros. gave me an advance on my contract to try to get my life together, so I got my first apartment at 18. It’s the same apartment I’ve been in ever since. I come home and my neighbors have been the same ones I’ve had since I came to L.A.

New York or LA?
L.A. because I love New York so much that I wouldn’t want to live there and gain any bad memories.

Punk or Daft Punk?
Daft Punk.

Beer or wine?
Beer.

Mac or PC?
Oh, Mac definitely.

Twitter or Facebook?
Neither. I don’t do any of them.

There’s a fake Garrett Hedlund on Twitter.
People keep asking me why I don’t respond to them on Twitter and nobody can seem to believe that it’s not me. And they say, “Yeah it is. It’s your picture” and I’m like, “You’re such a fool.” As long as people know it’s not me, they can finally realize that this person’s silly and psychotic.

Hottie of the Week (And Interview!): Garrett Hedlund

Ladies and gents, we introduce to you this week’s Hottie of the Week Garrett Hedlund. You may recognize him from Friday Night Lights or from the two movies he has coming out this month, Country Strong (with Leighton Meester) and Tron:Legacy (with Olivia Wilde), and he’s also starring in the upcoming flick On The Road with Kristen Stewart. But hot and famous co-stars aside, Garrett is proving to be pretty hot and famous himself!

And we know that even more now after chatting with him. We talked about his workout routine, what it was really like filming the hi-tech Tron, and yes, what he looks for in a girl. You’re welcome.

Click on to check out the super hot pics — and our exclusive interview! — with Garrett!

Teen.com: Congrats on being our Hottie of the Week! How does it feel?
Garrett Hedlund: It’s sweet, it’s very generous. I feel very honored.

Teen.com: Do you think you’re ready for heartthrob status after your two new movies come out?
Garrett Hedlund: I don’t know, I’m just taking it one day at a time. I’m just excited for the world to get to see Tron and Country Strong. Gwyneth gave such an amazing performance, and Shana Feste as a writer/director is so extremely wonderful and I am very proud.

Teen.com: So you wore lots of Spandex in Tron. What was it like getting in shape for that?
Garrett Hedlund: Olivia and I both trained down at the facility called 8711 and we both had to work on mixed martial arts and do motorcycle training. It was in the 3 months leading up to the commencing filming.

Teen.com: Did you do all those motorcycle stunts yourself?
Garrett Hedlund: We had a wonderful double. Some of the stuff is too dangerous and we couldn’t risk that. But, I did still get to cruise the motorcycle quite a bit.

Teen.com: So what was it like filming? How did all the special effects come into play?
Garrett Hedlund: Daryn Gilford, the production designer, made some really incredible sets, but we also had an extreme amount of blue screen work that we had to do. We’re just in a stage all day, every day. People ask “Does the blue screen stuff get challenging?” And it does get tricky at times. But Joe directed me, and he would describe everything in such detail, you could just see it. That’s what made him such an incredible director. He was always ten steps ahead.

Teen.com: In Tron, you get rescued by a girl. Do you like it when a girl makes the first move?
Garrett Hedlund: No, not really. I’m much more of a mind person. I’m drawn to very smart people who have their heads screwed on straight and are focused and know what they want to do and have aspirations and inspire me, so one day when I find that I know I will know immediately.

Teen.com: Were you upset that there was no on-screen kiss between your character and Olivia Wilde’s in the movie?
Garrett Hedlund: No, that’d just be freaky. If you see the film, her character is so innocent. She is childlike. Her character is learning about life outside the grid. It would look like I was a freak trying to come on to a character like this.

Teen.com: Let’s talk Country Strong for a minute. Were you a country music fan going in?
Garrett Hedlund: Well, I grew up on a farm and we only had one radio station that played only country music, so I grew up with it, with Tim McGraw. Then ten, twelve years later, for him to play my father in Friday Night Lights, and then to embark on this journey with him, it’s so surreal and unbelievable at the same time.

Teen.com: We heard you had to learn to play guitar for the movie…
Garrett Hedlund: Yes. I was playing guitar all day every day getting ready for Country Strong and studying the lives of all the wonderful greats in country music: Chris Kristofferson, Wade Jennings, Merle Haggard, Johnny, Willy, Hank Sr, Hank Jr.

Teen.com: You said you grew up on a farm. What were you like when you were a teen, living on a farm?
Garrett Hedlund: I was always kind of goofing off. I’m the youngest of 3. I was always the class clown I guess. Well, I don’t want to say class clown, but I was always a goof off.

Teen.com: Last question. Are you single?!
Garrett Hedlund: Yes!

Source

The 26-year-old Tron: Legacy star recently shared that he was practically speechless after watching the film’s final product.

“I saw it couple weeks ago when I was in Montreal, but only with a couple pals and on a smaller Technicolor screen. But even then it was an incredible experience. It’s such a high-tech adventure,” he told MTV News.

“It’s undoubtedly like anything I’ve ever seen before,” he added, “and I think the loss for words on it is the best part of it and I can’t wait to see it again.”

Garrett is featured in the February issue of Men’s Health.
Thanks to Laura for the scans, you’re always the first to get the goodies!

Other kids practiced to make the track team. Garrett Hedlund didn’t have time for that, so he chased cows instead.

His family’s 400-acre cattle farm in northern Minnesota was at the end of the bus route, 2 hours from school. When he arrived home, he spent his time plowing fields and mending fences. But Hedlund wanted to be the fastest kid in his grade school, so chasing wayward bovines during weekend cattle runs became his practice. “Everybody else would drive a truck or a four-wheeler, but I’d go out in my boots,” says Hedlund, the country lilt still in his voice despite 8 years of living in Los Angeles. “When a spooked cow took off, I’d run as fast as I could to chase him back to the herd.”

Soon he was one of the best runners at his school. His speed propelled him into wrestling, football, and cross-country. These things tend to snowball: You prove to yourself that you can succeed at one endeavor, and that gives you the confidence to try another. “You’re gaining the strength to conquer obstacles,” Hedlund says.

Perseverance became habit, and that habit kicked in when Hedlund made the leap to acting. He had to train heavily for supporting roles in Troy and Friday Night Lights. But then he reached leading-man territory with the big-budget Tron: Legacy, and all that prep just wasn’t enough.

“When Garrett came in, he was a little skinny and a little soft,” Tron’s lead training instructor Logan Hood says. Hedlund’s character is a futuristic gladiator, a guy who’s playing a video game from the inside as he hurls discs at opponents and competes in a vicious version of motorcycle roller derby. “We needed him to look more like an action hero—lean with muscle mass.”

For men with competitive spirits—and Hedlund counts himself among them—a challenge can be rousing in itself. But vanity is also a fine motivator, and Hedlund had reason to worry: He’d be wearing a skintight action-hero bodysuit throughout the movie. “They do a body scan so they can formulate the suit around you. It’s three-quarters of an inch of foam rubber that fits you like a glove,” he says. “If you have a belly, your scan’s going to have a belly.” In other words, he needed to shape up. Fast.

Hedlund had been there before. His career sputtered for years because he was either too big or too small for the roles he wanted. At 160 pounds, he was passed over for the role of a soldier-type guy. Too thin. So he worked out and put on weight. But then he was too bulky for the skinny-intellectual part that came up next. Eventually, being able to quickly transform his body (and convince skeptical casting agents that he could do it) became a matter of survival.

There are easy ways to shape-shift, of course: You can starve yourself, or overeat, or just do curls all day long. But Hedlund knew such tactics would be unsustainable and downright dangerous. He’d be yo-yoing through cycles of muscle-imbalance injuries, plus giving in to the inevitable bounce-back binges that follow extreme dieting.

Real weight control requires commitment; once you build a healthy foundation, your body will transform in whatever way you need it to. So during those lean years of his acting career, long before he could afford a gym membership, he regularly ran 2.2-mile loops around the reservoir near his L.A. apartment. Then he’d head home for what he calls “a living-room prison workout” of pushups, situps, pullups, squats, and squat thrusts.

But squat thrusts alone don’t make an action hero. Which is why Hedlund turned to Hood, a former Navy SEAL who had helped train the conspicuously toned cast of the movie 300. Hood had 9 weeks to do with Hedlund what normally would take 6 to 12 months. The plan: “Garrett didn’t repeat any workouts, which helped keep him engaged,” the trainer says. “If you don’t know what you’ll be doing when you walk into the gym, you don’t fall into a rut.”

Hood needed Hedlund to become leaner and more athletic while adding muscle mass, so part of his workouts involved circuits of farmer carries, bear crawls, tire drags, and box jumps—with no rest in between. Try it. A combination like this builds strength from all angles, and busting through at a fast pace keeps your heart rate up and burns fat.

Hedlund didn’t love the work at first. “But then he started to connect the dots: Doing stuff he didn’t like was going to make him good at the things he does like,” Hood says. That’s because these exercises help train your body for real-world movements. Not all do. Take crunches: How often do you need to lift things while lying on the floor? But a ball slam is basically a crunch in a standing position. It mimics the way you move throughout the day, and how Hedlund had to move onscreen.

In addition to slimming him down and hardening him up, Hood focused on Hedlund’s shoulders. Strength there is key for any physical demand, action sequences included. Without strong shoulders, you’re more likely to injure yourself. “We did a lot of overhead presses,” Hood says. Most days he’d also squat heavy, deadlift heavy, or do heavy push presses—a version that should be part of any workout.

Hedlund started as a sloucher, but by the time filming began, he was walking into the gym with swagger. It wasn’t just confidence showing, though: It was the result of stronger core and back muscles, which helped his posture and gave him a visible physical confidence. “If he stands taller and pulls his shoulders back and down, he looks more imposing, more heroic,” Hood says. “Body-fat percentage doesn’t matter. It’s really about how you look.”

And how you feel.

“You might think the thinner version of yourself is going to be the most positive or confident, but that’s not how it is for me,” Hedlund says. “When I’m over 200 pounds, that’s when I’m the most confident version of myself.”

But he’s also comfortable with a less sculpted self. Perfection is never what he strives for. That’s an impossibility; being afraid to screw up only limits you. It’s why Hedlund says he thinks of life as a new car—one you’ve already scratched. Now you’re free to roam a little looser, to take gravel roads, no longer fearing a ding or a dent.

There are many correct ways to do something, and a setback isn’t the same as a failure. That singular insight is the source of his confidence, he says. It’s what allowed him to overcome all the bumps a farm kid hits as he auditions and struggles and finally breaks through in Hollywood.

Where did he learn that? Maybe back home: When Hedlund was 10, his best pal was a steer he raised for competition. The animal won a blue ribbon. “I came home from school one day and the steer was hanging from the tractor bucket,” he says. It was a shock; he was so focused on nurturing it that he never considered what came next. But after a good cry, he had no choice but to accept that dinner came from the backyard. “Now when somebody says, ‘I saw a bird die when I was 3 years old and I don’t eat meat,’ I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ ” he says. “I eat steak. I eat everything.”

You’re slapped down, you learn, you adjust and move on.

This winter will be huge for him. His career will change. Tron is a legend relaunched, and another movie, Country Strong, puts him alongside Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGraw in the kind of open land that was his first training ground. There’s an endless horizon when you live at the end of the road in Minnesota. There’s also an endless yearning for forward progress. Garrett Hedlund is on his way.

The Tron Workout
Garrett Hedlund whipped himself into action-hero form by doing a variety of daily workouts, like this one from Tron trainer Logan Hood.

Warmup
1 Rowing: 10 minutes, with your average wattage equal to your body weight.

2 Bag sprawl: Jump over a barrier, such as a heavy bag, and then drop and do a pushup. Stand back up and repeat in the other direction. Go for 40 seconds, rest 20 seconds, and repeat four times total.

Workout
3 Pick up a barbell, and don’t put it down until the circuit below is complete. Hedlund did 7 reps of an exercise before moving to the next, resting only after completing the circuit. That’s a huge challenge, so begin by doing the circuit with just 1 rep each (so that’s 7 reps total after doing all seven moves). Rest as needed, and repeat for 15 minutes.

1. Deadlift
2. Row
3. Hang clean
4. Front squat
5. Push press
6. Good morning
7. Back squat

Garrett Hedlund is a “user” – and proud of it.

But it’s not substances the 26-year-old instant fanboy fave, who stars as programmer (aka “user”) Sam Flynn in “Tron: Legacy,” uses for a rush – it’s an intense dose of cutting edge CG graphics and modern day movie magic used by Disney to bring the big screen reboot back to life which give Garrett his buzz.

“To be able to wear one of the ‘Tron’ suits was such a privilege to expose something that was kind of the first of its kind,” Garrett – AccessHollywood.com’s newest Rising Star – recently told Access.

However, donning the iconic attire wasn’t as easy as just zipping up a tracksuit.

“To wear them, we had to get ourselves scanned into a computer. We had to do a cyber scan that scans your whole body for every curve to get it so precise, it looks like it’s a part of you,” the young actor revealed. “Me and Jeff [Bridges] would joke around sometimes before scenes, ‘I guess if the stunt goes wrong, they’ve got us scanned into the computer so they can still finish their film.’”

While landing the role of Sam in the beloved franchise was a role coveted by many young actors throughout Hollywood, it wasn’t a story the Minnesota-born actor necessarily grew up admiring.

“I never actually saw the first one until 2003, almost 20 years after it came out,” Garrett revealed to Access during Comic-Con 2010 in July. “And then five or six years later, you’re on the set filming the new installation to this legacy — it’s kind of mind blowing and very surreal at the same time.”

“Tron: Legacy” is undeniably Garrett’s biggest role to date, but it certainly isn’t his first. With roles in “Troy” (alongside Brad Pitt), “Friday Night Lights” (starring Billy Bob Thornton), “Four Brothers” (opposite Mark Wahlberg) and “Georgia Rule” (with Jane Fonda & Lindsay Lohan) – and soon to be seen in “Country Strong,” starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Garrett has been afforded the opportunity to work alongside some of Hollywood’s biggest names.

That was no different with “Tron: Legacy,” as he shared the screen with Oscar winner Jeff Bridges.

“Jeff is such a great, great person. He never ceases to inspire me. It’s just the way his mind is. He’s so wise and he’s such a great storyteller and I’m so driven by storytellers, I could spend everyday listening to him chat about life,” Garrett told Access. “I love Jeff – he’s the best father in the world.”

In fact, it’s a mutual adoration between the thesps.

“Garrett was just wonderful,” Jeff told Access. “He’s a musician, so we got to [play guitar] a little bit.

“And he kind of looks like me in a weird way,” Jeff laughed. “So we kind of kicked off a father and son thing I think – off camera and on camera.”

Despite what is sure to be superstar success – and subsequent fan recognition, Garrett (who grew up on a cattle farm near the small town of Strandquist, Minn., and later moved to Arizona, where he signed with a talent agency as a teen before moving to Los Angeles immediately after graduating high school) said he’s still trying to get used to the idea of being a Hollywood leading man.

“I never was involved in a film that I had to be there every day, all day, you know. I was always a supporting role trying to write his role bigger,” he admitted. “I was never the one that had to sort of be there all day, every day — finding the energy to get through it and do the best you can.”

“Are you ready for your life to change?” Access asked the up-and-comer.

“That’s kind of a heavy question,” he smiled. “One day at a time.”

Source: Access Hollywood

“Tron” was an eye-popping technological extravaganza when it first hurtled into theaters in 1982 with its speeding light cycles and gaming imagery. The film eventually proved to be so influential — spawning video games and a whole “Tron”-obsessed subculture in its wake — that Disney circled back to the project for the 2010 sequel “Tron Legacy.”

For Garrett Hedlund, who plays Sam Flynn, the son of software engineer Kevin (portrayed in both movies by Jeff Bridges), the latest take on the project is still an impressive spectacle that ramps up the potently mind-scrambling imagery. Hedlund revealed his thoughts to MTV News about the seeing the final product for the first time on the blue carpet at the elaborate “Tron Legacy” premiere Saturday.

“I saw it couple weeks ago when I was in Montreal, but only with a couple pals and on a smaller Technicolor screen. But even then it was an incredible experience. It’s such a high-tech adventure,” Hedlund said. “It’s undoubtedly like anything I’ve ever seen before, and I think the loss for words on it is the best part of it and I can’t wait to see it again.”

Even though Hedlund has a role in bringing the digital wizardry of the franchise to a new generation — in addition to getting a high-profile, career-boosting gig from the project — he said he was most excited to see “Tron” filmmaker Steven Lisberger revel in the enduring influence of his groundbreaking movie nearly three decades later.

“That’s where I’m so happy for Steven Lisberger. Something he created around 28 years ago and this wild maniacal story has come to fruition 28 years later in such an unbelievable way,” he said. “To see him walking with his family and enjoying this with all of us and being there when we’re filming with all of us and sort of being the godfather on set, I’m more proud of him in this very moment.”

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