Brad Pitt is throwing himself into the action scenes for his new survival adventure movie, Heart of the Beast, and a source exclusively tells In Touch he’s got no issue putting his body on the line at 61, having whipped himself into tip top shape in preparation for one of his most physically challenging roles in years. 

“Brad is going into Heart of the Beast with his eyes wide open as a producer, a star, and somebody who is going to be putting himself through an enormous amount of physical punishment to get this story told,” says a source who has worked with the A-lister on multiple projects over the years. Though the insider adds that many people are surprised the Gen-X heartthrob still wants to put himself out there like that. “It’s tempting, because of Brad’s age, to ask, ‘what the hell is he thinking?’” 

The movie’s plot centers around a former U.S. Navy SEAL who becomes stranded in the rugged North American wilderness with his retired combat dog, though filming is taking place in the wilderness near Kinloch, New Zealand, as well as other locations around the South Island of the country. The Troy star was caught on camera sporting a knit beanie and scruffy beard walking around a campsite set and was also seen kayaking in a nearby river. But rest assured, the source says Brad’s up for the challenge and specifically prepared his body for the toll of shooting the flick.

“This movie came together quickly, but Brad has been quietly amping up his workouts with the specifics of this wilderness adventure in mind.”

Since debuting a statuesque physique in 1999’s Fight Club, men around the world have been desperate to follow Brad’s exact workout plans chasing the same chiseled abs and shoulders he sported throughout his acting career. Though, the source notes that for his upcoming movie, it isn’t dumbbells in an airconditioned gym getting him in the shape needed to portray a wilderness survival expert, but rather constant exposure to the elements and lots of cardio outdoors.

“Brad hates the gym, and even though he has a full weightlifting spread at his home in Los Angeles, he’s been doing as much outdoors training as he can, putting his flexibility and endurance to the test,” the insider explains.

“This is going to be an intense shoot and even though Brad isn’t doing all of his own stunts, he’s going to be in some physically hairy situations along the lines of what his old pal Leonardo DiCaprio put himself through on The Revenant.” 

As many fans know, Leo, 50, went to absolute extremes to prepare for his Oscar-winning role in Alejandro Iñárritu’s epic. Not only did the What’s Eating Gilbert Grape star camp out in the wilderness for days on end, he reportedly slept in an animal carcass, ate raw bison and went for regular swims in frozen rivers.

“Of course Brad is competitive enough to want to top what Leo did,” the source continues, “but even matching that level of extreme physicality would be remarkable, and not without real risks.”