From RoboCop and Suicide Squad to Silent Night, Swedish actor Joel Kinnaman, 45, is often required to look like he can handle whatever is thrown at him on screen. And that demands an intense training programme off it.
For Silent Night, that preparation had to be especially sharp. Speaking to Men’s Health US, Kinnaman explained that one particular scene gave him a very clear training goal.
‘I had a f***ing montage,’ he said. ‘As soon as you get a montage, you know where you need to go with that.’
But his preparation wasn't just about building what he called his ‘montage muscles’ – it was also about athletic performance.
‘We wanted to make the action sequences really dirty and messy and frenetic,’ he said.
That meant spending time working on striking, stunt-specific movement and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, which Kinnaman has practised since 2018.
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‘I always need to keep training to keep my mind sane, regardless of what role I’m preparing for. I’m always keeping my regimen at a good level, so I need to train at least 4 times a week,’ Kinnaman explained.
‘In this business, things can come up pretty quickly,’ he added. ‘Someone falls out, you get an opportunity to jump into something really interesting, but you've got to be in good shape. That's why you've got to stay ready, so you don't have to get ready.’
Although Kinnaman said strength training formed part of his preparation – particularly for the more muscular demands of the role – the workout out he shared with Men’s Health US centred primarily on martial arts and conditioning.
The actor will need to stay in peak condition, too. He is next set to star alongside Samuel L. Jackson in The Beast, an action thriller expected to arrive in cinemas in late 2026.
If there’s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it’s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in – all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.
Ready to build muscle, burn fat and come out the other side looking, feeling and performing better? Click here to get 14 days of free access to the plan via the Men’s Health app.
Kate is a fitness writer for Men’s Health UK where she contributes regular workouts, training tips and nutrition guides. She has a post graduate diploma in Sports Performance Nutrition and before joining Men’s Health she was a nutritionist, fitness writer and personal trainer with over 5k hours coaching on the gym floor. Kate has a keen interest in volunteering for animal shelters and when she isn’t lifting weights in her garden, she can be found walking her rescue dog.
