How much can you bench? It’s the clichéd question for anyone who obviously lifts. And the fittest celebrities get asked, too. We set out to figure out exactly how much some of those jacked stars could, at their best, bench for one rep.
A few rules: Celebrity status is limited to actors and musicians. We’ve tried to verify all lifts, ideally with video. We’ve often estimated one-rep maxes from multi-rep sets (and rounded these up if the sets were part of exercise circuits) using a one-rep calculator. Verification status is noted as follows:
Verified (video evidence or results at an official event)
Witnessed (by a neutral observer)
Unverified (merely claimed)
Disputed (conflicting information)
If the bench presser’s best lift is within the last 10 years, we’ve generously gone with “can bench press.” Otherwise, we’ve gone with “could bench press.” So, let’s get on with it. What’s the truth? How much can or could these celebrities bench press?
How much could ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER bench press?
500 lbs. (227 kg.) Unverified
Arnold’s biggest verified bench was 441 pounds in a powerlifting meet when he was 20, but his strength likely peaked a few years later when he was winning Mr. Olympias. He recently claimed his best bench press was 525, but legends can grow with time. More often through the years he said 500. The big 5-0-0 might have been rounded up, but Arnold certainly was in that neighborhood.
How much can JOHN CENA bench press?
487 lbs. (221 kg.) Verified
This 2015 bench press is the only videoed one-rep-max on our list. Wrestler/actor John Cena was 38 when he posted this big bench to Instagram. Cena was so close to the exclusive 500 Club. If he joined it, he didn’t let us know.
How much could DAVE BAUTISTA bench press?
450 lbs. (204 kg.) Unverified
It’s a big number, but Dave Bautista has been a big man for a long time. It seems doable by him, back in his WWE days.
How much could DWAYNE “THE ROCK” JOHNSON bench press?
450 lbs. (204 kg.) Witnessed
College football teammate, Leon Searcy, remembers Dwayne Johnson as a freshman: “He was out-squatting and out-benching guys who had been there three to four years at Miami. He was benching over 400 pounds, squatting about 500.” Presumably, The Rock, who claims 450 at his best, grew even stronger in subsequent years.
How much could LOU FERRIGNO bench press?
445 lbs. (202 kg.) Unverified
The Hulk is in a virtual tie with The Rock and Bautista. Long arms hurt all three tall men from benching even more. We used 23-year-old Ferrigno’s video-verified 245-pound overhead press for 10 reps to estimate his one-rep bench press. Could he bench more in later years? It’s possible but unconfirmed.
How much could TERRY CREWS bench press?
405 lbs. (184 kg.) Verified
We’ve seen claims of a 475-pound bench press for Terry Crews, but cannot verify that big number. Crews is the one person here who did official bench presses in a measured event—the 1991 NFL Draft Combine. When he was 22 and weighed 237 at 6’2″, he benched 22 reps with 225 pounds. This equates to 390 pounds, but because it’s hard to accurately equate one-rep maxes with such high reps, we’ve rounded that up to four plates per side. His weight, listed at 245, didn’t increase much during his five seasons in and out of the NFL, but did his bench press?
How much can 50 CENT bench press?
405 lbs. (184 kg.) Unverified
Claims for 50 Cent range from 405 to “more than 415.” These are big numbers for the rapper/actor who has typically kept his weight under 220 pounds. However, he was a workout fiend, and a 2015 Muscle & Fitness profile mentioned him incline-pressing 275 for reps, observed by the article’s author, so 50 may indeed be in da 400 Club.
How much can LL COOL J bench press?
405 lbs. (184 kg.) Unverified
In 2017, the then-49-year-old rapper/actor tweeted: “Hit 225lb 20x on bench today [NFL] combine style then hit 335lb for a freshen up. Felt pretty light. Gonna test my max in a couple weeks.” (20 x 225 = 375 x 1) In a response to the tweet, LL Cool J, a long-time gym rat, claimed his personal best was 405. Mama said knock out four plates?
How much can BUSTA RHYMES bench press?
400 lbs. (181 kg.) Verified
A 2013 video shows the XL rapper Busta Rhymes incline pressing five reps with 315 but stopping four inches short of his chest each time. We gave him three good incline reps to calculate his one-rep bench press (typically, you’re about 80% as strong in the incline as the flat press).
How much could WILL SMITH bench press?
385 lbs. (175 kg.) Unverified
Though he first got jacked for Ali (2001), according to his trainer, the superstar rapper/actor Will Smith hit this bench press personal best prepping for I, Robot (2004).
How much could SYLVESTER STALLONE bench press?
385 lbs. (175 kg.) Disputed
In his 2005 fitness book Sly Moves, Stallone claims to have been able to bench press 385-400 before tearing his pec in a bench press contest with his trainer, Franco Columbu, prepping for Rocky II (1979). But in a 1979 New York Times article, Sly said: “I was working with Franco Columbo….At the end of a workout he said, ‘Let’s see you bench‐press 200 pounds.’ I said, ‘I’m kind of tired and I hate to press,’ but he said, ‘Just once,’ so I laid back and pressed 200. ‘Try 210,’ he said. I didn’t want to, but he insisted so I did. ‘Now 220,’ and I said, ‘Franco, knock it off.’ ‘Just once,’ he said, so I tried 220 pounds and the weight fell on me and I heard a pop.” His pec had torn. So, 26 years before the 385 claim, he said the weight he successfully benched was only 210. Did he do more before or (with a reconstructed pec) after? It certainly seems like a Rocky-sized workout fanatic should’ve benched at least 275, but, based on Stallone’s own contemporary account, 385-400 is dubious.
How much can METHOD MAN bench press?
354 lbs. (161 kg.) Verified
On December 4, 2020, the 49-year-old rapper/actor, in the midst of a personal fitness quest, posted to Instagram a video of himself benching 315 for four reps. On January 18, 2023, he topped this at age 51, benching 315 for five reps, though with elbow sleeves (unlike the earlier PR). That equates to a 354.4-pound single. At the end of the 2023 workout, he also benched 335 for a single without either wrist wraps or elbow sleeves.
How much can JONATHAN MAJORS bench press?
340 lbs. (154 kg.) Unverified
In 2022, Jonathan Majors played a triumvirate of beefed-up roles: a supervillain in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, a boxer in Creed III, and a bodybuilder in Magazine Dreams. After 18 months of weight-training and eating high-protein to transform his physique, Majors claimed his max bench press was “probably 340 pounds.”
How much can MARK WAHLBERG bench press?
335 lbs. (152 kg.) Unverified
To play a juiced bodybuilder in No Pain, No Gain (2013), the 5’8″ Mark Wahlberg increased his body weight from 165 to 205 pounds in seven weeks and claims to have similarly upped his bench press to an impressive 335 pounds.
How much could ERIC BANA bench press?
330 lbs. (150 kg.) Unverified
In 2009, Eric Bana, who starred in 2003’s Hulk, said, “I used to lift very heavy weights in my mid-twenties. I used to bench press over 300 pounds. The most I ever lifted was 330 pounds.”
How much can MICHAEL B. JORDAN bench press?
325 lbs. (147 kg.) Unverified
The trainer of Michael B. Jordan claimed he benched 315 pounds for two reps while beefing up to his biggest muscular weight for Black Panther (2018). We converted this to a one-rep max.
How much could GERALD BUTLER bench press?
320 lbs. (145 kg.) Unverified
While prepping for 300 (2006), Gerald Butler was supposedly benching 225 for 10 reps in a circuit with other exercises. Did the Butler do it?
How much could HUGH JACKMAN bench press?
315 lbs. (143 kg.) Unverified
The Aussie actor was reportedly able to bench three plates when prepping to play Wolverine in X-Men (2000). By the way, 15 years later, the then 46-year-old Hugh Jackman Instagrammed that he benched 235 along with a 355-pound squat and 410-pound deadlift all in the same workout for a 1000-pound powerlifting total.
How much can HENRY CAVILL bench press?
300 lbs. (136 kg.) Unverified
While training 300-style (lots of exercise circuits) for Man of Steel (2013), Henry Cavill’s higher-rep bench press set weights were said to be based on his ability to do a single with 300.
How much can CHRIS HEMSWORTH bench press?
300 lbs. (136 kg.) Verified
Chris Hemsworth is not a low-rep guy, and, focusing on functional strength, he prefers pushups to bench presses. In a 2018 video, Hemsworth reps out bench presses with 195. Because this was part of an exhausting eight sets of bench presses (and was at least a 10-rep set), we’ve estimated Thor’s one-rep strength then at 300.
How much can CHRIS PRATT bench press?
300 lbs. (136 kg.) Unverified
This is based on Chris Pratt’s reportedly benching 10 reps with 210 pounds in circuits while training for Guardians of the Galaxy (2014).
How much could BRAD PITT bench press?
280 lbs. (127 kg.) Unverified
We computed a one-rep max based on the 8 reps with 225 pounds Brad Pitt reportedly benched when getting yoked for Fight Club (1999).
How much could NELLY bench press?
270 lbs. (122 kg.) Witnessed
According to a tweet by sportswriter Spencer Hall: “For the record, Nelly’s bench press was around 270 at one point. Perfectly respectable.”
How much can KEVIN HART bench press?
240 lbs. (109 kg.) Verified
That’s an impressive 71% more than Kevin Hart’s bodyweight. We calculated the 140-pound comedian/actor’s one-rep max based on a video of him benching 225 for three reps in 2017.
How much can KIT CONNOR bench press?
231 lbs. (105 kg.) Verified
The Heartstopper actor was filmed hitting this teenage personal best in 2023 when 19.
How much can GAL GADOT bench press?
100 lbs. (45 kg.) Unverified
When training for Wonder Woman (2017) Gal Gadot claimed to bench 85 pounds for “several reps.” Depending on how many “several” is, it equates to 92-105 for one.
