The Real Price of a Big Mac

How much weight did you put on?

I put on about 25 pounds in a month.

How did you feel at the end of the month?

[Laughs] I felt terrible! I felt so bad because I put on this weight so quickly my knees hurt. I was so depressed. I would eat, and I would feel so good because I would get all that sugar and caffeine and fat and I would feel great. And an hour later I would just crash--I would hit the wall and be angry and depressed and upset. I was a disaster to live with. My girlfriend by the end was like "You have to stop because I've had it." It really affects you in so many ways that I think a lot of people don't realize, very subtle little things. Over the course of the film you see my transformation, and it's not pleasant.

Why McDonald's specifically? Why not Burger King; why not Subway?

McDonald's is an icon, a cultural icon, a cultural phenomenon and nothing represents America and the American fast-food way of life more than McDonald's. The chain has 30,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries on six continents around the world. It has truly influenced how we eat, how food is made and how, really, other cultures are starting to eat. All these other food companies have started to follow suit, from franchising and how they manufacture and distribute their food, McDonald's is a trendsetter. So for me, the idea of picking McDonald's was, one, to pick it as the icon for what it represents. It represents every food, in my opinion; it represents every company. Also in my opinion it represents the one company that more than anybody else could really make a difference. McDonald's could institute change that everyone else would also follow. It could do away with super-size portions and everyone else would say, "Wow, you know what? We don't need to do this anymore either. We need to make a difference." If they would truly champion a change for healthier menu option--it would happen across the board.