'I tried to infect myself with him': Ben Foster took performance-enhancing drugs to recreate Lance Armstrong's cheating scandal in The Program

By Shyam Dodge For Dailymail.com

Published: 15:57 EST, 11 September 2015 | Updated: 17:42 EST, 11 September 2015

Ben Foster took performance-enhancing drugs to play disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong for upcoming film The Program.

The 34-year-old, who has a reputation for going to extremes in his acting roles, admitted to doping in order to 'infect' himself with the athlete.

In an interview with The Guardian, Foster said he was only 'just recovered physically' from the effects of the drugs he was taking.

Committed to his work: Ben Foster took performance-enhancing drugs to play disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong for upcoming film The Program

Committed to his work: Ben Foster took performance-enhancing drugs to play disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong for upcoming film The Program

However, the Alpha Dog actor would not disclose what specific doping agents he took, saying he did not recommend the practice to fellow actors.

'These are very serious chemicals and they affect your body in real ways,' he explained. 

'For my own investigation it was important for me privately to understand it. And they work.' 

Method actor: The 34-year-old, who has a reputation for going to extremes in his acting roles, admitted to doping in order to 'infect' himself with the athlete

Method actor: The 34-year-old, who has a reputation for going to extremes in his acting roles, admitted to doping in order to 'infect' himself with the athlete

Foster, who is a practitioner of method acting, has done some intense and bizarre things for roles in the past.

Despite having nothing more than a cameo appearance in Rampart (2011), he lived on the streets and urinated in his pants in preparation to play a homeless veteran.

And for his role in Lone Survivor (2013) he ate dirt in order portray a Navy Seal. 

By way of explaining why he went to such great extremes for The Program, he said: 'The word I'm leaning toward is "infected". I tried to infect myself with him. Get him into my system.' 

Disgraced: Armstrong, one of the world's most renowned cyclists, was stripped of all his medals and banned from competitive racing in 2012 following an investigation

Disgraced: Armstrong, one of the world's most renowned cyclists, was stripped of all his medals and banned from competitive racing in 2012 following an investigation

Foster plays the disgraced cyclist in Stephen Frears' film, while Chris O'Dowd plays journalist David Walsh, who was one of the sports writers that uncovered Armstrong's performance-enhancing substance abuse. 

The film is based on Walsh's book Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance Armstrong, which chronicles the journalist's efforts in exposing seven-time Tour de France winner Armstrong for doping in order to win races. 

Armstrong, one of the world's most renowned cyclists, was stripped of all his medals and banned from competitive racing in 2012 following an investigation.

Coming soon: The Program premieres at the Toronto Film Festival on Sunday

Coming soon: The Program premieres at the Toronto Film Festival on Sunday

In real-life, Armstrong referred to Walsh as the 'Little Troll' after he began trying to expose Armstrong's systematic doping throughout his cycling career.

Walsh revealed that Armstrong had been working with the controversial Italian doctor Michele Ferrari, which he revealed in 2001 after a two-year investigation.

The Program premieres at the Toronto Film Festival on Sunday. 

 

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