Wrestlers who shift their career to acting

Web Desk

06th Mar, 2023. 06:59 pm
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Professional wrestling and movies have many parallels.
Wrestlers other than Hulk Hogan also tried their hand at acting.
He soon gave up wrestling to pursue acting.

Wrestling is a fraud. That is the criticism that professional wrestling fans have to put up with the most. Even though it is predetermined and planned, there are times when it is fascinating and resembles seeing a movie come to life. When two men or women go through a scripted performance that mimics a genuine battle without either getting gravely injured, it is astonishing even though wrestlers may anticipate a move from their opponent.

When those wrestlers aren’t engaged in combat, they’re promoting the impending battle with carefully written promos designed to pique fans’ interest. So, yes, you may call professional wrestling phony, but it also features performers pulling off some of the most incredible stunts you’ll ever see.

It shouldn’t be surprising that these stunt performers, who spend so much time practicing their lines, would also try their hand at acting in motion pictures. Although having different sets, professional wrestling, and movies have many parallels. That doesn’t imply that the change is simple or effortless. Some wrestlers, particularly in recent years, have retired from the sport and found fame as movie stars, while others ought to have remained in the ring. It’s still an interesting transformation that many people have undergone over the years, despite success and failure.

Hulk Hogan blazed a trail

Although Hulk Hogan would come to mind as the first wrestler to transition to acting, that wasn’t the case. Even while it wasn’t precisely mainstream, professional wrestlers have long been featured in movies. One of the stars of Ed Wood’s so-bad-it’s-good Plan 9 from Outer Space from 1959 was Swedish wrestler Tor Johnson. Ironically, renowned wrestler George “The Animal” Steele would portray him in Tim Burton’s Ed Wood biopic. He had actually been in several films before that.

While luchadors like El Santo appeared in some really terrible horror luchador movies in the 1960s and 1970s, it wasn’t until the 1980s that wrestlers in movies gained widespread popularity. The best early example is 1982’s Rocky III, which featured Hulk Hogan as Thunderlips, a showboat who competed against Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky Balboa early in the film. This was before Hulkamania in the WWF took off (now known as WWE). His acting career truly took off a few years later, when Hogan’s ascension took over professional wrestling.

You won’t be wowed by his movies if you contrast them with those of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson or Dave Bautista nowadays. There are some real duds there, but Hogan deserves credit for his ability to take a small-scale regional form of entertainment and make it a hugely popular phenomenon. Hogan was such a game-changer that it was remarkable that he was even cast in movies, regardless of how well he performed.

Hogan had a run of successful VHS releases in the late 1980s and early 1990s, including Mr. Nanny (1993), Suburban Commando (1991), and No Holds Barred (1989). While none of these are particularly excellent entertainment, if you were a child back then, you probably ate up those movies.

Roddy Piper and Andre the Giant both had significant effects on Hollywood

Throughout the 1980s, wrestlers other than Hulk Hogan also tried their hand at acting. Two more individuals had a significant impact on movies during the decade. The Princess Bride, which came out in 1987, is unquestionably a modern classic that has been enjoyed by many.

Andre the Giant, a wrestler so legendary that he became a household name, is at the center of the story. Hulk Hogan’s performance as a leading man in movies was spectacular, but Andre was in a big Hollywood movie with big Hollywood stars, even though he wasn’t the lead. Andre played Fezzik, a subordinate of Shawn’s villain Vizzini, in the Rob Reiner-directed film with Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Wallace Shawn, and Billy Crystal. Many of his co-stars returned to be interviewed for the 2018 Andre the Giant documentary because of his presence and his kindness, which left them in awe.

When “Rowdy” Roddy Piper landed the starring part in John Carpenter’s They Live a year later, one of professional wrestling’s greatest villains was transformed into a hero. He had starred in the cult classic Hell Comes to Frogtown earlier that year, but under Carpenter’s direction, he flourished as the bubble gum-chewing, ass-kicking vagabond battling aliens in this Reagan-period parody. Piper, one of wrestling’s great promo masters, showed that he could be a major lead, not just with his acting, but in action scenes as well, such as that iconic and never-ending fight scene that’s impossible to turn away from.

Andre and Piper didn’t have successful acting careers like Hogan did for a brief period of time, but even The Hulkster’s roles waned in the middle of the 1990s when the True American hero dealt with a steroid issue, left the WWF for WCW, and later rose to the status of an iconic villain.

Late in the 1990s, wrestling underwent a change into the Attitude Era, abandoning its juvenile comic book aesthetic in favor of a highly sexualized and brutal soap opera. Although some tried, like Bill Goldberg appearing in 1999’s god terrible Universal Soldier: The Return, or a long list of WCW wrestlers having cameos alongside David Arquette in Ready to Rumble, there was no longer a need for wrestlers to make movies. No wrestlers made the huge leap to become starring men.

The Rock, Dwayne Johnson grew to be the most famous actor on the planet.

It changed when a particular Great One raised an eyebrow. With charm and coolness on a level that had never been seen before, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson ascended to the top of the WWF in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It led to him playing The Scorpion King in The Mummy Returns in 2001 and then resuming the role as the main character in The Scorpion King in 2002. Although the movie had some clunky parts, it most critically demonstrated that Johnson had the “it” factor both on and off the screen of a movie theatre.

He soon gave up wrestling to pursue acting. Before really breaking out with the Fast and the Furious franchise and other parts such as in Moana and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, there were challenges with mediocre movies like The Rundown and Walking Tall (where Arnold Schwarzenegger made a passing of the torch cameo). He has demonstrated beyond a doubt that it’s not a joke when a wrestler turns into an actor and is now possibly the biggest star on the planet.

Many wrestlers attempted to duplicate his achievement, but none were really successful. In the horrible Blade: Trinity, Triple H made an appearance. Others who had appearances in feature films include Edge, CM Punk, and Kevin Nash, but none of them were particularly successful. The moment The Rock’s former job, wrestling, entered the movie industry with WWE Studios, wrestlers came the closest to replicating what The Rock had accomplished. There were a few hits in there, like the unexpected Fighting with My Family in 2019, but the majority of them were uninspired direct-to-video fare with WWE wrestlers making an effort to pass like action heroes despite the subpar screenplays they were given.

Both John Cena and Dave Bautista demonstrated their acting prowess.

One of those WWE Studios athletes found success. John Cena took over as the WWE’s spokesperson when “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and The Rock left the organization. He attempted to become an action star early in his acting career with forgettable movies like The Marine, but he didn’t have much success. Then Trainwreck appeared. In this important movie with Amy Schumer and Bill Hader, when Cena made an appearance, he stole every scene he was in and demonstrated that, hey, this muscle head can act.

He’s also amusing. Next came lead roles in big-budget blockbusters and smaller comedies, and over the past ten years, Cena has won over audiences with roles in Daddy’s Home, Bumblebee, Blockers, F9, and The Suicide Squad. He is capable of appearing in superhero films like The Rock, but he also has no problem absolutely degrading himself in order to make people laugh.

David Bautista was the second-largest star in WWE during the middle and end of the 2000s, if not the biggest. You’d be excused for not seeing that he could develop into a big actor. He was already in his mid-40s and lacked the classic babyface looks needed to succeed in Hollywood. He succeeded in doing so by not attempting to replicate what others, such as The Rock, had done. Bautista didn’t immediately try to break into the leading man category.

He likes to play a supporting role in significant ventures. In Guardians of the Galaxy, he was hilarious as Drax, in Spectre, he fought Daniel Craig’s James Bond, and in Blade Runner 2049, he played a small but crucial role. Bautista allowed his career to developing over time by letting his performances, not his name, become more well-known. It has paid off because he is currently starring in Knock at the Cabin, one of the best films of 2023 so far.

In the past, wrestlers who attempted to act were ridiculed or given a sly compliment such as “He’s not bad for a wrestler.” Now, three of Hollywood’s most popular actors are wrestlers. More wrestlers will try their hand at acting as long as they are thriving. A24’s The Iron Claw recently announced the casting of AEW World Champion MJF, WWE women’s legend Becky Lynch stunned audiences with her uncannily accurate portrayal of Cindy Lauper on Young Rock, and Roman Reigns, the current face of WWE and cousin of The Rock, has the looks and charisma to pursue a career in acting whenever he wants.

The fact that wrestlers have disproven the notion that they are muscle-head idiots is undeniable. If anything, they are better prepared than others to take a shot at Hollywood because of their line of work and what they accomplish on a weekly basis in the ring. Actors who were once wrestlers have dominated every field of television and film, winning box office titles and becoming well-known figures. It wouldn’t be at all unexpected to see one of them accepting an Oscar at the Academy Awards at some point soon.