How Tom Hardy went from an unknown actor struggling with addiction to an Oscar nominee

Last year was very good for Tom Hardy.

The 38-year-old actor was the star of the "Mad Max" reboot, taking over from Mel Gibson in "Mad Max: Fury Road" - which landed 10 Oscar nominations and was a box-office smash.

He also sang in a film adaptation of a musical, played notorious English twin gangsters, and landed his first Oscar nomination for his incredible supporting performance in "The Revenant."

His first role was in HBO's "Band of Brothers," and he made his film debut in "Black Hawk Down," but Hardy was struggling through alcohol and drug addiction. After heading to rehab in 2003, Hardy got his life and career back on track and hasn't stopped since.

He's been lauded for portraying the infamous criminal Charles Bronson, and he's perhaps best known as the villainous Bane in "The Dark Knight Rises" (though his face is obscured). He learned how to cage fight for "Warrior" and was a Jewish gangster in the series "Peaky Blinders." Next, Hardy will be producing and starring in the BBC One/FX series "Taboo" and starring in Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk."

Here's a look back at Hardy's career and how he became one of the best actors of his generation: