11 Amazing Bodies of Animal Kingdom Stars

Explore the captivating lives of the stars from Animal Kingdom, the thrilling show about a family embroiled in crime and complex relationships. We delve into the personal journeys and insights of the cast. Daniella Alonso discusses self-belief in the acting world, while Scott Speedman reflects on transitioning from competitive swimming to acting. Discover Leila George's motivation for acting, Molly Gordon's directing aspirations, and Ellen Barkin's take on sexism in Hollywood. Each story offers a unique glimpse into the lives of these talented actors.

1. Daniella Alonso

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Daniella Alonso played Catherine Belen on the show’s first season. She shared her advice for aspiring actors with Felix Magazine. “You hear it all the time, but looking at the business side and how choices get made, always believe in yourself and your ability. You are where you need to be, what you are is what you are and someone will eventually see that and want to work with you. Don’t try to fit into a mold. Be present and be happy with where you are. Roles come and go; in the grand scheme of things it doesn’t matter. Just try to be happy.”

2. Scott Speedman

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Before playing Baz Blackwell, Scott Speedwan was a competitive swimmer. He talked about stepping away from the sport to Men’s Journal. “Anybody who does any sort of sport intensely at any age has repetitive stress injuries and that's basically all it was. It was kind of a nerve injury and I think the non-medical term for what I had was ‘arm burnout,’ just from over-training. I was a distance swimmer, a miler, freestyle, and the training back then was definitely very intense. I had a good couple of years of competing at a prime age and then my arm just kind of gave out. I've told this story many times, but it was definitely one of the best things that has happened to me.”

3. Leila George

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Leila George played the younger version of Smurf on the show. She talked about staying driven to work with Body & Soul. “I like living in a house with a roof. And sometimes you need money for that. That's really it. It's also allowed me to be pickier with what I choose to do. And I'd rather spend my time working, doing that, than doing jobs that maybe I'm not in love with. I like the structure of having a work schedule. I like earning my own money.”

4. Molly Gordon

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In addition to being Nicky Belmont on the show, Molly Gordon has started directing. She notably directed Theater Camp. Gordon talked about this with Shondaland.com. “All I want to do is make things that are original and authentic and maybe stranger. And it feels like that’s kind of what’s at stake right now — can you get paid to make good work, and can you make a living wage as a writer, as an actor? But also like, how do we get people to come and see these things? I think the only thing we can do is try to make bolder, weirder things and not just the same thing over and over again.”

5. Ellen Barkin

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Ellen Barken played the lead role of Smurf Cody. She talked about sexism in the acting world to InStyle. “One of the best benefits of getting older is that I no longer feel guilty about protecting myself. That’s a big thing in my job because the gender disparity is outrageous. I don’t think there’s a working actress alive who I wouldn’t call a badass. It’s a hard job, made even harder by being a woman.”

6. Ben Robson

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Ben Robson, who plays Craig Cody, talked about getting in shape for the role to Men’s Journal. “I definitely adapted my training for this. I knew it was very aggressive so I took up boxing and got myself a trainer. Boxing is something I've always enjoyed doing, but I've went into it a lot more and really learned how to do it. That's obviously an incredible workout, and it’s totally addictive as well because you start getting better and better with the combos, the flow, and the routine. At the same time, I'm in the gym doing different routines. I manage to do some circuit training, then be out in about an hour. After the gym, you feel sort of strong and good about yourself, but it's not something I enjoy doing for hours on end.”

7. Darren Mann

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Darren Mann played Baz Blackwell in flashbacks on the show. He talked about his upbringing to The Vancouver Sun. “Growing up I had an older brother (Tyler Mann) that took me absolutely everywhere with him and we didn’t have a dad growing up. My mom (Lenore Mann) had to work whatever job she could so we could play hockey and stuff. I was really blessed with a really great role model of a brother. In some ways I actually got to channel a little bit of my own brother and what that was like.”

8. Shawn Hatosy

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Shawn Hatosy plays Pope Cody on the show. He talked about his training process with Muscle & Fitness. “If I have the time, I’ll lift for an hour and try to hit every muscle. Let’s say I’m doing bench presses. I’ll do a set, and then I’ll stay active by doing some situps on the decline bench, and then I’ll do air squats or something, and then I’ll go back to the bench and do another set. I try to keep moving. And if I’m not able to play tennis that day, I’ll do at least 30 minutes of cardio after I’m done lifting weights.”

9. Jake Weary

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Jake Weary opened up about playing the villainous Jake Dunmore on the show to Ravelin Magazine. “If the villain can be endearing and make the audience root for them and yet still have that menacing nature and mal-intent, it can be very rewarding. There are times where I tend to feel lost when portraying my character on Animal Kingdom, which is basically about a family of looting sociopaths. However, there tend to be these ‘aha’ moments where, despite the awful things my character does, I can still find the humanity in his actions.”

10. Emily Deschanel

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Emily Deschanel had a recurring role of Angela Kane. She is a vegan, and talked about her diet to Garden Of Life. “I’m definitely more aware of the fact that there are a lot of things which are not good for your bones. For instance, if your body doesn’t get proper nutrition, it will actually leach what it needs from the bones and cause problems. Once, when I was filming a scene, my character was supposed to offer someone a soda to drink. I said we couldn’t do that because soda is not good for your bones!”

11. Jennifer Landon

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Jennifer Landon played Amy Wheeler on the show. She also has a role on Yellowstone, and talked about going riding on the show to TVFanatic.com. “We actually did all of it. Our great stunt people tested everything out first. I think they rolled on some of those. I think they ended up using our tape. That horse did charge at me. Those horses were stomping around. That water was freaking cold. And then we drifted downriver like that.”