Actor and comedian Kumail Nanjiani posted two shirtless photos of himself on Instagram on Monday, and man, has he come a long way from the nerdy techie Dinesh he played on HBO's Silicon Valley, which just ended for good.
"I never thought I'd be one of those people who would post a thirsty shirtless, but I've worked way too hard for way too long so here we are," Nanjiani wrote in a caption.
There was method to his muscular madness.
"I found out a year ago I was going to be in Marvel's Eternals and decided I wanted to transform how I looked," Nanjiani wrote. He's playing master samurai Kingo in the big-screen Eternals movie, coming next fall.
But Nanjiani points out his transformation isn't something your regular person can just up and do.
"I would not have been able to do this if I didn't have a full year with the best trainers and nutritionists paid for by the biggest studio in the world," he wrote. "I'm glad I look like this, but I also understand why I never did before. It would have been impossible without these resources and time."
Internet commenters, both famous names and regular fans. gave the photo a workout.
Nanjiani's wife, writer Emily Gordon, wrote simply, "Worth it."
"This is ridiculous," said comedian Chelsea Handler. "This means anyone can get fit."
Irish actor Barry Keoghan wrote, "It's been a joy (being) by your side in the gym watching you lift four times heavier weights than me bro."
Comedian Yassir Lester snarked, "I look like this too..." (Spoiler: He does not.)
But the workout way of life is not for everyone. Mystery Science Theater 3000 host Jonah Ray responded to the brawny pics with, "I had burritos last night."
Others just had fun with the amazing before-and-after looks. "Kumail Nanjiani won the 'beginning of the decade vs. end of the decade' challenge," wrote one Twitter user.
Said another, "Marvel actually has Super Soldier Serum."
Kumail Nanjiani won the ‘beginning of the decade vs. end of the decade’ challenge pic.twitter.com/bQ9JclOoYa
— crazy spooked asian (@tribranchvo) December 16, 2019
Marvel actually has Super Soldier Serum 😂 all seriousness, congrats @kumailn
— BossLogic (@Bosslogic) December 16, 2019
And the year of hard, crazy progress 💪 pic.twitter.com/YR28AxH1YY
Marvel fans: "Oh no! RDJ and Chris Evans are leaving the MCU. What are we going to do??"
— Curtis Kimberlin Jr 🦃 (@ckimberlinjr) December 16, 2019
Simu Liu and Kumail Nanjiani: "I think we can be of assistance..." pic.twitter.com/ztzFZiJ2oe
thank you @kumailn for what you do for hot comedian visibility. we don’t have to beautifully suffer in silence anymore because of you pic.twitter.com/1QT8tqFdJs
— ziwe (@ziwe) December 16, 2019
I think it’s time we take a look at the Kumail Nanjiani diet pic.twitter.com/3yk6trouZs
— bob w/ 2 turtledoves (@thecowbob) December 16, 2019
Me, watching the Kumail Nanjiani discourse play out on the timeline. pic.twitter.com/UK4xyGwPtW
— Isaac Fitzgerald🤞🏻🖤 (@IsaacFitzgerald) December 16, 2019
Do we now live in a world in which Kumail Nanjiani arguably looks stronger than Chris Hemsworth? pic.twitter.com/XLYu2Tj2Oi
— Conner Schwerdtfeger (@ConnerWS) December 16, 2019
Now once and for all, people will stop confusing me & @kumailn! https://t.co/SekLfLSfcT
— Hari Kondabolu (@harikondabolu) December 16, 2019
You may remember a similar buffed-actor buzz from 2016, when J.K. Simmons, then 61, shared an impressive workout shot as he prepped to play Commissioner Gordon in the film Justice League.
The Eternals is scheduled for release on Nov. 6, 2020.
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