Joseph Gordon-Levitt Isn’t Into Bodybuilding Despite Character’s Vain Views

Joseph Gordon-Levitt might play a vain man obsessed with body image in his new romantic adult-comedy Don Jon, but the 32-year-old has no desire to obsess about his looks in real-life.

In a recent interview, the A-List Hollywood star opened up about working out and the expectations for what a man is “supposed” to look like.

According to Gordon-Levitt:

“Bodybuilding is not my thing. I like to play basketball with my friends on the weekends or I’ll ride a bike for some exercise but this character is very vain. He’s very concerned with how he looks. He has a very rigid set of expectations of what a man is supposed to look like.”

Don Jon marks the directorial debut for the former child actor. In the movie, Joseph plays a Jersey Shore type guy searching for true love by way of co-star Scarlett Johanssen. His character is obsessed with the right look for a man, which he discovers by looking at guys in porn films.

Talking about his idea for the movie, Gordon-Levitt reveals:

“I wanted to tell a story about how people are treated more like things than people… Maybe it was because I grew up working as an actor in TV and movies, and actors are sometimes treated more like things. But I don’t think it’s just actors – everyone experiences this. And I was also very curious to talk about how media plays into that. So I thought a story about a relationship between a young man how watches too much pornography and a young woman who watches too many romantic Hollywood movies would be a funny way to get at this question.”

Don Jon opens on Friday, and reviews have been mostly positive with an 80% Rotten Tomatoes score.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is definitely flexing his acting muscles lately by taking on varying roles that showcase his new leading man status in Hollywood.

Do you plan on heading out to see Don Jon this weekend?