Sigourney Weaver Trained Like a Navy SEAL for ‘Avatar’ Sequel

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Actors and actresses have to do more than just play a part. They have to look it as well.

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They also have to be in the type of physical condition to perform some of the more physically demanding scenes. When you see a Hollywood actor or actress looking fit and limber, it’s because they’ve put in the work at the gym.

Or in the case of Sigourney Weaver, in the water.

Weaver, 73, has a part in the highly anticipated Avatar sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water. She appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to promote the film, describing a year-long process of learning how to hold her breath underwater — for more than six minutes.

“We had to learn to free dive,” she said. “We had this amazing teacher who teaches the Navy SEALs. So we had him for about a year, training us to do breath holds… I actually got up to six and a half minutes.”

Sigourney Weaver Trained Like a Navy SEAL for ‘Avatar’ Sequel

This, of course, was met with a major round of applause, and likely some amazement, from the audience. But Weaver downplayed it a bit.

 “I was not moving,” she said. “It’s much easier to hold your breath when you’re … stationary.”

Moving, stationary, whatever. Holding your breath like a Navy SEAL also takes some serious mental fortitude.

“When the desire to breathe comes, [the trainer] called it ‘The Dirty Villain.’ And you ignore ‘The Dirty Villain,'” Weaver said.

“And you go, ‘Ha! You. Go away.’ And then you try to do all these mind games… Anything you can do from thinking about, ‘Oh I really want to breathe.’”

Along with Weaver, Avatar: The Way of Water stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Kate Winslet and Vin Diesel, among others. It is of course directed again by James Cameron.

The original Avatar came out in 2009 and the remastered version is now in theaters. The sequel is coming Dec. 16.

Avatar: The Way of Water

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