Mark Wahlberg says his latest movie 'Father Stu' was his most important film yet.

The 50-year-old actor has revealed he partly financed the new movie, which he has dubbed a passion project for him, as he spoke about the importance of bringing movies that "challenge" him as an actor.

Speaking on The Today Show, he added: "I want to make movies that challenge me as an actor, that surprise audiences, that entertain people. I want to make people laugh. I want to make people cry. If people really recognise the power of the film, then maybe those things will happen, you know? We'll see. But you know, again, if this movie does a lot and it does a lot of business, it’ll do a lot for people and then we’ll be able to do a lot with the success of the film to help others."

It comes after Mark revealed he had to gain 30 pounds for the role, but wanted to do it in a "healthy" way.

He explained to CBS Sports: "I would love to sit here and say - you know, chocolate chip cookies are my favourite - so I'd love to say that I had some chocolate chip cookies and wine at the end of the day, but I had to eat and consume so many calories, and tried to do it in a healthy way, that by the time it came to having a little cheat meal, you didn't wanna do anything other than just lay down. It felt so bad. But the journey - the spiritual journey, the physical journey - were such critical parts to the story."