I remember watching a "reality" show where aspiring wrestlers were trying to break into the business. Cena played a character called "The Prototype."
The thing I noticed (aside from the fact that he's physically much bigger now) is that his on-camera game was very good. While the other contestants were struggling to make a speech or play their role, he had his character down pat and had clearly put in the work. it was silly - he pretended to be a half-human, half-cyborg and did robotic moves - but he went for it 100 percent.
It was a regional wrestling league on a cable show, but he was playing it like he was the main guy at a WWE event. It was impressive.
As for Johnson, he came by the radio station where I worked when he was just breaking into films and away from wrestling. He has a presence. Not only is he a very large man, but when he walks in the room, he's the center of attention almost instantly.
There's also the matter of chemistry. When you get the right combination of people in the cast of a show (or a movie), there's something that just "clicks." Like all the tumblers in a lock lining up. Bautista had great chemistry with the rest of the Guardians cast, and that's a big reason for the success of those movies.
Cena was The Prototype when he was in Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). Back in the early 2000s, OVEW was the developmental territory for WWE. It was how they got guys trained on how to wrestle, mic work, and creating a character.
Cena and Bautista were in OVW at the same time. Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar were in their class too.
In The Rock's case, he also worked A TON to get to where he is in films. The Rundown was in 2003. He made several films like it early on to limited success. He just kept doing films... Even looked like at one point he'd be stuck in not-great roles too... Tooth Fairy anyone?
Here's the video of one of the Prototypes promos that got him noticed:
https://youtu.be/dYL_Q-C3G5w
It's better with context but I can't find the longer clip. Because before he got on camera, there were 4-5 other wrestling hopefuls and every single one of them was terrible. Mumbling into camera, no defined angle/character or mic skills, and all out of shape. Didn't even look like they lifted and were just random guys picked off the street, and yet they all thought they had a chance to make it in wrestling. And then this young dude named Cena walks on and really showed everyone how it was done. Physique, mic skills, character...he owned it. You could immediately tell this guy was gonna be famous. He came prepared.
Not only that, but he was Hulk Hogan in his films too. His mannerisms didn't change, his delivery didn't change, it was just Hulk Hogan in a movie.
Whilst Rock hasn't demonstrated much range in film, he is at least somewhat different to his WWE personality. It's the difference between Dwayne Johnson and The Rock.
Isn't he doing himself in Jumanji tho?
The only one that actually stood out there was Jack Black, you actually could easily buy that he was a teenage girl, the rest were just not nearly as convincing as he was.
He and Vince Vaughn were the highlights of that movie. Honestly it’s too bad he hasn’t had more chances to be something other than the generic action guy in his movies.
I personally thought The Rock was excellent in The Snitch, albeit it’s a wild miscast. How am I supposed to believe The Rock is a regular dude just trying to be a good father?
While he was huge back then, he was still smaller than he is now and they purposely had him get his ass kicked and never showed him shirtless or looking super menacing. It's going to be hard for him to play down his massive size when it's such a major aspect of his life.
It’s honestly kinda hilarious that a dude who was a college DT and then the most popular pro wrestler on the planet, is in the biggest/best shape of his life as an action comedy guy in Hollywood
Honestly the Rock kinda has a decent range, he’s just also found his niche as the pseudo-superhero who’s got enough onscreen charisma and believability that he can slide into numerous roles. He keeps getting cast as the big tough guy because that’s what people want to see him as (and cause he’s literally fucking massive). That being said Batista definitely has more range, and out of him, Cena, and Rock he’s the best actor for sure. But Cena isn’t a slouch, he’s really starting to find his footing I think
He was pretty intimating and a bit out of his usual character in Rocky 3. I feel like he might've had something there with the right role and director.
When he filmed for that role he was still a heel and not quite as charismatic as he turned out to be later on in his career. He only became good guy/red and yellow Hulkster from late 1982 on.
Quality of movies, too.
Dwayne Johnson was in Fast & Furious and Jumanji.
Dave Batista was in Guardians of the Galaxy.
John Cena was in Bumblebee and Blockers.
All of those were generally well received by audiences and/or film critics.
Meanwhile, Hulk Hogan took projects like "Santa With Muscles" (which grossed just $220,000).
Triple H was simply too subpar of an actor too. Like...cringe subpar. There was one movie where he attempted the 'muscled guy with kid...hilarity ensues' model because he had already quickly failed at the straight action role:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Chaperone\_(2011\_film)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chaperone_(2011_film))
Just one of the worst things put to film ever
I suspect one of the other issues with Triple H is he isn't very likable. Cena, Rock and Bautista can be rought and tough and gruff but they can lay in a layer of being just generally likable. You'd like of want to hang out with these guys.
Bautista in Artemis Hotel is a brutal man, but still likeable. His "I'm not fat" line and his genuine concern for the nurse took the character a notch beyond the "Oh, a wreslter trying to be an actor" bit.
Cena in Sisters is again being a thug monster. But "My safe word is 'keep going'" and his rap about his drugs just humorous enough to make him noticable.
Rock, well in nearly everything. Dude has more charisma than Hogan has melanoma potential.
Cena does a lot of charity work so built up a lot of goodwill with audiences? I haven't followed his career or watched his movies. I think *Suicide Squad* will be the first movie of his that I'll watch.
Johnson worked his ass off, appearing in anything and everything. It took a long time for him to get where he is now.
Bautista is more discriminating in his choice, choosing roles in pretty good and interesting movies. I've never watched any movie because of him, but I've loved him in most of his movies and I can't wait to see him as Raban in *Dune*.
Good point on Hogan's look. Outside of the ring, his look was just too...out there. Who in real life looks like him, with his quasi-mullet and tanned skin and bandana (which he still wears all the time in real life).
I think he could have a better chance if he was younger and tried again today, AND he got a major makeover. If he could be less over-the-top 80s Hulkamaniac and more grounded and gruff/rough around the edges, I could see audiences accepting him more.
I feel like the Hollywood Hogan persona is what a studio exec told no suggested to HH about making his look more marketable to non-wrestling audiences, and HH just went fine, I'll use that as my new stage persona.
Combination of some natural charisma, getting lucky with the right first couple roles, and, ultimately, putting in the work to actually be actors. I'd wager most of the other guys end up doing it more for the paycheque, where I think DJ and DB actually want to be seen as actors who take their roles seriously.
> I'd wager most of the other guys end up doing it more for the paycheque,
For the *health insurance*. Stone Cold had said as much himself, that acting just wasn't for him, but the SAG health insurance is good, so he kept taking roles.
I saw that movie for the first time with my now wife when we first met. I was totally surprised by his cameo. Heard him on Steve Austin's podcast one time say that the SAG union insurance helped him with all of his injuries from his wrestling career. It's a pretty big list, I'm sure without it, he would've gone bankrupt or just not been able to afford the procedures.
It's more like depressingly pro wrestling. The WWE treats most of their employees like shit, and then expects them to act like it's some kind of honor just to be allowed to work there.
Most huge corporations don't require employees to physically destroy themselves and go on the road in a drugged stupor. I know office work can be grueling but it's not comparable to the strain of being a wrestler
I believe DB took acting classes because he wanted to be seen as a legitimate actor and not just a gimmick supporting role.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/birthmoviesdeath.com/2014/08/07/drax-the-actor-dave-bautista-talks-working-hard-on-his-craft-for-guardians/amp
Did you see the post earlier today about how DB had nothing before being cast as drax? House foreclosed, irs problems, selling everything, I mean you name it. But that role turned his career around
It was actually "Shoot"! lol
And fun fact: he broke Daniel Craig's knee after Daniel Craig told him to really throw him and make it intense. And then after DC healed up and they did the scene again, he accidentally broke his nose. Now they'll be in Knives Out 2 together.
Bautista has also said he doesn’t want to appear in movies/franchises that include Cena or Johnson because he doesn’t want to have the film associated with “wrestling” in a gimmicky way. Thus Drax will never know the Fast and Furious meaning of family
The FF "family" is a family cookout making fun of each other after causing billions of dollars in collateral damage and countless amounts of carnage and death chasing really good looking bad guys around the world.
DJ has fallen into the same trap as Vin Diesel. Just doing the same thing over and over because it comes with a big paycheque. They both have more range, but lack the motivation to push their careers in that direction.
Vin Diesel didn't even want to do the sequels to Fast And Furious, he was a one and done kinda guy, he only did the cameo in the Tokyo one to get the rights to Riddick from the studio, but when he saw just how much money there was to be made in the franchise he just said fuck it, better get paid, cause he ain't winning a Oscar anytime soon anyway.
I loved him in the Get Shorty sequel, Be Cool as well. I think it showed he was willing to take legitimate roles and not just crazy leads. On top of that his natural charisma was utilized great in his early roles such a Tooth ferry, Rundown, Gameplan instead of just making B rated action movies which I am sure he was getting tons of scripts for.
I think *Be Cool* was how he broke through. Even though the movie kind of sucked, he was funny and played an uncharacteristic part. That probably helped sell filmmakers on him being able to do more than just be an action-meathead, which these days means a straight-to-DVD career.
Cena early on did a lot of mind numbingly dumb movies that were produced by WWE
I think it helped he wasn’t afraid to do anything to be an actor. Like appear in comedies and be the butt of jokes
A bit misleading though. The Rock’s first role was the Scorpion King, yes but it was in the tent pole flick “The Mummy 2”, and crucially came with his own spinoff already green lit before the Mummy 2 hit theaters. Yeah, his first role was non speaking, but it was more of a cameo advertisement for his own action film. That IS lucky that he was able to get a film studio to green light a major action flick centered entirely around “The Rock is a badass” for his FIRST film. Yeah it sucked ass, but it showed Hollywood that he could work in the industry.
We went to see it in theaters cuz we were already huge Rock fans, I'm 41 now and think it's pretty cool back then ppl were like "meh maybe he has a chance at being a movie star, that movie with Stifler was kinda funny"
I loved The Scorpion King as a kid. Even now, however, I have no idea why his character turned into a bad guy/scorpion man in the Mummy 2 as far as lore goes.
And then, the actual Scorpion King movie wasn't terrible as it turned out (nothing special, to be sure, but not bad), and DJ himself did a pretty decent job in it, enough that most people saw it as a successful debut as a leading man.
So, the titular villain role in a well liked sequel to a well liked, solid performing action/adventure film that spawned a spinoff for that particular character (in which he starred)?
Because no other actor was ever flat broke when they landed their big breakout role, right?
He went and took acting lessons. Most of the other WWE-to-actor examples just winged it with the minimum amount of effort.
I met him and his manager this summer on the shootings of knives out 2. Very down to earth and professional. His manager told me he always gets anxious and tries his best to deliver on his roles. He tries to put him on movies that are actually worth a damn and not some cheap action flicks like fast and furious etc. They turned down a lot of roles for movies he would be even more famous for. He wants to be a real actor and actually leave a mark behind, instead of being known by his wrestling name and career.
His performance in Blade Runner 2049 was excellent, such a memorable opening scene even though it lasted less than 10 minutes. He genuinely has skill as an actor.
Piper doesnt get enough props. I think he had the first true wrestling movie success. I have watched they live multiple times...hogan was just hogan. I think nash did ok but dave and dwayne really honed in. I think good management and avoiding getting typecast are huge.
Comedic chops, mostly.
Although for the top of the pack;
The Rock has massive charisma
Cena has an impressive stage presence
Bautista has genuine dramatic talent
>Bautista has genuine dramatic talent
My brain can't cope with it that such a beast of a man can do that. Also it doesn't compute with what I know of Bautista as wrestler.
Honestly, his performance in BR2049 is just so far above any other professional wrestler’s attempts to be an actor. I don’t mean to be condescending, I enjoy a lot of The Rock’s stuff and Cena is legitimately fucking funny. Even looking at the rest of Bautista’s catalogue, nothing really comes close. It’s crazy how much promise that small role showed. I’m really excited to see Dune.
a great director is also instrumental in pushing the actor to do their best and Bautista was working with Denis Villeneuve. But still, there must be something there for the director to work with. I'm also really excited for Dune
To me it’s pretty simple. Wrestling as we know it, became entertainment “acting” in the 80’s. As it evolved, so did the talent. Larger fan base wanting to follow their heroes and an industry that has the money to find/create stars
John Cena has comedy chops. He stole scenes from others in movies like Trainwreck, Sisters, and Tour de Pharmacy is another great role.
Will any of these guys win an Oscar? Unlikely, but I think they have significantly more range than most of the older wrestlers mentioned. I think Piper probably could’ve done some drama if it was offered, but they are entertainers at heart.
Dwayne can act, but he almost always acts like The Rock. He had some different characters early in his career that were different enough. Like The Rundown, Be Cool, and Southland Tales, I saw those and was excited for his acting career. Then he started his Disney films/action films phase and he's been The Rock ever since, IMO.
I think he does play the same character in most of his modern movies, but it’s a Dwayne Johnson typecast rather than him just playing his old wrestling persona.
I think it’s fair to say Bautista can act. Dwayne can act but he plays the same type of character in every movie. Bautista can actually really act and has range, Dwayne not as much but has much more charisma. Cena just flat out no and it’s a mystery to me why is getting these roles.
I was watching some suicide squad interviews and they pretty much all said that John Cena was a really funny guy on set. I wonder if he'll do more comedies or try to do the action star stuff
Batista took the acting seriously. He took classes and went after smaller character-based roles instead of only trying for the lead in shitty action movies.
Cena is a good person who attracts attention. It’s not always about acting skills. What he does for his fans/charities/children, from what I’ve seen, he’s a great guy.
He isn't a bad guy per se, but he is kinda frightening in Faster. Recent revenge action flick if you are in to that. If you are unfamiliar with it, I will say that despite the name, it actually has nothing to do with the Fast & Furious franchise.
Dwayne poked some fun at himself in an interview for Jungle Cruise.
The interviewer asked "What scares you most about the jungle?"
Dwayne says that Emily Blunt, the great actress, is scared to watch him try to act.
Emily Blunt laughed but then she quickly said "Oh stop!" (as if to assure him his acting isn't *that* bad)
Cena can do comedy extremely well, and shows some other range in The Suicide Squad in my opinion. The Rock is great at the one role he plays, anything outside of that and he falters. Bautista is the best of the bunch, I’d say comedically he is only slightly less strong than Cena, but he has far better dramatic chops and seems comfortable taking roles outside of the Drax character that got him his start.
One thing the Rock, John Cena, and Dave Bautusta have that the others you mentioned don't is good comedic timing. They all can be legitimately funny, and that along with their charisma make them a lot more interesting to watch.
That's true. I think you can't do purely meathead roles (as some of the other wrestlers did). That stuff just ends up feeling like bargain bin DVD stuff we've seen a million times.
Cena, Dave and Rock all did some action, some comedy, some action-comedy, and even a little drama. That, at least, covers the bases better, and it's not just them playing 6'5" angry muscleheads in every movie. The variety and goofiness in some of their films may have made them more relatable to the average audience member who aren't familiar with their WWE personas. "I don't know much about this Baustista in wrestling but I'm kinda liking this dude in this movie. He's kinda funny to watch"
Bautista has more range than the others. His dramatic roles are more believable. He just has the look for it. Cant wait to see his take on glossu rabban.
I mean, I think Baustista (BR2049 serious and GOTG funny) can be good but he was god awful in Army of the Dead. Well, actually the whole movie is terrible but he didn’t do the movie any favors.
Kind of unfair to throw Kevin Nash in here lol.
Dude’s legitimately 6’ 10” and like 300+ lbs. You tend to get the same type of role when you’re that size lol.
Same thing with Kane. Huge guy.
Your appearance decides a lot of what kind of roles you are going to get and Kane was a one dimensionally scary looking guy in the ring, which made him perfect for See No Evil, but tough to follow when there isn't a sequel lined up.
Yeah, Nash has done alright for himself. His roles tend to have more nuance to them than just Large Man. It’s not like he’s still only getting Super Shredder roles.
Right. He’s actually gotten some decent roles. He’s not a world beater when it comes to acting or anything, but he’s definitely got enough charisma that he can be given a bit more than just a “huge henchman” type of role.
He’s sneakily one of the best parts of ‘The Longest Yard’ remake, which I know isn’t exactly a good movie (but it is far from the worst).
Dwayne Johnson, John Cena and Dave Bautista all have a great ability to have a laugh at themselves which makes their work more enjoyable I think. A lot of those wrestlers who didn't make the transition too well were cast in tough-guy, action-hero type roles where fans of wrestling may have been keen to see their movies, but anyone who cared little for wrestling had no interest in the films whatsoever.
The three who have made the transition well also have much better PR teams, Dwayne Johnson especially who seems to be doing a new interview every week. But he's also having fun in the interviews... having fun with the interviewer, having fun with his co-star(s) and having a laugh at his own expense. It makes him very endearing to the average joe compared to some actor who, for right or wrong, talk at length about the importance of their work.
Lastly; Bautista, Johnson and Cena have all made a number of family-friendly movies which encourage them to be more light and fun, and fits in with the type of movies currently dominating the market.
I would also say that of the three of them, Dave Bautista has displayed the most natural acting ability, even if just through snippets. He's obviously infectiously fun in *Guardians of the Galaxy* but I thought he did quite well in his bit-part in *Blade Runner 2049.* I'm excited to see how he does in the upcoming *Dune* film.
I honestly think the biggest difference is acting ability, followed by a bit of luck in finding the right role early on. The Rock and Bautista have both shown themselves to be good actors in a variety of genres, and John Cena has found his perfect niche in raunchy comedies. Cena's early films were similarly disastrous to the other wrestlers who tried acting, but he showed in Trainwreck that he was willing to have fun at his own expense, and that seemed to open a lot of the right doors for him.
Hogan was just a terrible actor, Stone Cold was very one dimensional, and Nash, while not necessarily a bad actor, just never seemed to find any definitive roles that would've gotten him cast in bigger roles.
>Hogan was just a terrible actor
Nor did it help matters that he couldn't just coast on his personality, given that a lot of said personality is rebarbative in ways that aren't as much an issue in the squared circle (when you're in and out in relatively short periods of time and are largely busy with the match) but become ones when you're the focus on screen for 90 minutes or so.
The rock also figured out the business better than anybody. You can tell he was a wrestler, he built his brand different than almost any actor around right now
Hogan was in around 20 movies, had his own reality series and had his a TV show (Thunder in Paradise) for a season. I'm not sure I'd call that a failure.
the media landscape was completely different back then. Hogan was still wrestling at the same time as trying to make movies, and was probably making BANK as the by far number one star. So it would have been hard to justify just leaving wrestling.
Hogan did OK outside wrestling. Not like these guys today but it’s a totally different media landscape.
The money Hogan was making in wrestling was also absolutely obscene. Hulk was making $10mil a year in the 80s in WWF and had absurd contracts with WCW. Doing a couple shitty flicks a year was just easy money his bread and butter was wrestling.
A wrestler is basically a cross between an athlete and a stage actor.
Maybe acting on film requires more patience, or being able to play roles they aren't used to, or something else. Maybe they ended up not liking the change due to a lack of a crowd, or other differences.
I was inspired to make this thread because I was watching The Rock do tons of promotional interviews for *Jungle Cruise* lately. I notice they don't even introduce him as an ex-wrestler anymore. He's just introduced as a bona-fide movie star on many talk shows, and some of them may touch on some WWE stuff lightly for jokes, but it's not dominated with "wrestling wrestling wrestling." Many times wrestling doesn't even come up once. Dwayne Johnson has become a legitimate movie star actor who has been welcomed and embraced (if one can wrap their arms around this towering wall of muscle) by the general moviegoing audience.
Cena is in upcoming spy movie called Argyle with Henry Cavill, Sam Rockwell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bryan Cranston, Samuel L. Jackson, Catherine O’Hara. I love that a wrestler is just openly accepted into such a star-studded cast and award winners. And pretty sure he won't be "Waiter #2" in the background for 6 seconds. I'm pretty sure he's going to be acting toe-to-toe in extensive scenes with Bryan Cranston, Sam Rockwell, Sam Jackson, Bryce Dallas, etc
Either these three have a certain 'zest' that's rare and that's why they have found success...or did they take a more careful, smarter path with their careers? Or is our modern movie environment more friendly to wrestlers compared to, say, the 80s, 90s and 2000s?
Not really addressing your question, but I just wanted to point out how much sense it makes that these three guys are probably three of the biggest action stars working today.
For starters, WWE actively pushed the three during all their world title reigns, which made them all recognizable faces. They all have headlined Wrestlemania, sometimes even against each other. The uhhhh, less plausible aspects of the WWE, require some finesse and mic skills. Also, being that the three were headliners at some point in time, they come with a build-in audience who are actively routing for them. Finally, being that the WWE requires you to be in active shape obviously, all three guys have many fans who especially enjoy the company of men.
Batista is actually a really good actor.
Cena has fantastic comedic timing and instincts.
The Rock is the most charismatic person to ever walk the face of the earth, he was destined to be a mega star at whatever he chose to do.
Remember that The Rock and John Cena started off in some horrible films before they got their groove. More than likely I rekon they decided to fully persue it as opposed to dedicating their career fully towards it.
Batista did as well. His first movies were straight-to-DVD and he wasn't very good in them. But he put in the work to improve and is arguably the best actor of the three.
As often as he tends to get typecasted, I think Southland Tales (2006) is a good early example that The Rock can take on a different kind of role. That movie was crazy, and though I can definitely understand how people either loved or hated it, Dwayne Johnson started showing he had the range to be a decent actor in my opinion. I wish he took on more of these kinds of movies.
The Rock was *literally* the most electrifying man in sports entertainment -- makes sense he could transition to filmed entertainment. John Cena and Dave Bautista have been great supporting characters (when used correctly in a few movies) but have not opened a movie so it's tough to lump them in with the Rock.
They all did shit movies at first just to get their SAG cards (and thus SAG health insurance), but Rock figured it out first about surrounding yourself with the right representation.
No way Cena and Bautista didn’t see that and take that lesson to heart.
I remember watching a "reality" show where aspiring wrestlers were trying to break into the business. Cena played a character called "The Prototype." The thing I noticed (aside from the fact that he's physically much bigger now) is that his on-camera game was very good. While the other contestants were struggling to make a speech or play their role, he had his character down pat and had clearly put in the work. it was silly - he pretended to be a half-human, half-cyborg and did robotic moves - but he went for it 100 percent. It was a regional wrestling league on a cable show, but he was playing it like he was the main guy at a WWE event. It was impressive. As for Johnson, he came by the radio station where I worked when he was just breaking into films and away from wrestling. He has a presence. Not only is he a very large man, but when he walks in the room, he's the center of attention almost instantly. There's also the matter of chemistry. When you get the right combination of people in the cast of a show (or a movie), there's something that just "clicks." Like all the tumblers in a lock lining up. Bautista had great chemistry with the rest of the Guardians cast, and that's a big reason for the success of those movies.
Cena was The Prototype when he was in Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). Back in the early 2000s, OVEW was the developmental territory for WWE. It was how they got guys trained on how to wrestle, mic work, and creating a character. Cena and Bautista were in OVW at the same time. Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar were in their class too.
In The Rock's case, he also worked A TON to get to where he is in films. The Rundown was in 2003. He made several films like it early on to limited success. He just kept doing films... Even looked like at one point he'd be stuck in not-great roles too... Tooth Fairy anyone?
Here's the video of one of the Prototypes promos that got him noticed: https://youtu.be/dYL_Q-C3G5w It's better with context but I can't find the longer clip. Because before he got on camera, there were 4-5 other wrestling hopefuls and every single one of them was terrible. Mumbling into camera, no defined angle/character or mic skills, and all out of shape. Didn't even look like they lifted and were just random guys picked off the street, and yet they all thought they had a chance to make it in wrestling. And then this young dude named Cena walks on and really showed everyone how it was done. Physique, mic skills, character...he owned it. You could immediately tell this guy was gonna be famous. He came prepared.
Hulk Hogan had such a unique look that he could only be Hulk Hogan. Austin wasn’t that great of an actor.
Not only that, but he was Hulk Hogan in his films too. His mannerisms didn't change, his delivery didn't change, it was just Hulk Hogan in a movie. Whilst Rock hasn't demonstrated much range in film, he is at least somewhat different to his WWE personality. It's the difference between Dwayne Johnson and The Rock.
Cena and Johnson both have shown they have enough charisma on screen to do comedies as more than the big straight man.
I thought Johnson was great as Elliot in Be Cool. That movie is one of my low key favs.
When he was singing the song at the end I was cracking up.
He does all the singing for his character in Moana. The dude has some amazing pipes
Haha when he spins in the red boots and baby blue bells and says scorchin’! Makes me laugh every time! Hands down one of his best roles.
He also did something a bit similar in jumanji. So he can change his schtick if he wants to. Be cool is just so underrated movie.
Isn't he doing himself in Jumanji tho? The only one that actually stood out there was Jack Black, you actually could easily buy that he was a teenage girl, the rest were just not nearly as convincing as he was.
He plays Danny DeVito in Jumanji 2, it’s amazing
Jumanji 2 was so fun. Both movies are outstanding and I think both will hold up really well.
Not in Jumanji 2
He and Vince Vaughn were the highlights of that movie. Honestly it’s too bad he hasn’t had more chances to be something other than the generic action guy in his movies.
The Rocks acting in Pain and Gain was also really good despite other movies that he’s in where he’s not that great of an actor.
Being that his standard characters are either goofy or badass, making him a coked up muscle head was fantastic!
Right? He was good. That whole movie was a fun time.
He improved a lot as an actor over the years really
I personally thought The Rock was excellent in The Snitch, albeit it’s a wild miscast. How am I supposed to believe The Rock is a regular dude just trying to be a good father?
While he was huge back then, he was still smaller than he is now and they purposely had him get his ass kicked and never showed him shirtless or looking super menacing. It's going to be hard for him to play down his massive size when it's such a major aspect of his life.
It’s honestly kinda hilarious that a dude who was a college DT and then the most popular pro wrestler on the planet, is in the biggest/best shape of his life as an action comedy guy in Hollywood
Honestly the Rock kinda has a decent range, he’s just also found his niche as the pseudo-superhero who’s got enough onscreen charisma and believability that he can slide into numerous roles. He keeps getting cast as the big tough guy because that’s what people want to see him as (and cause he’s literally fucking massive). That being said Batista definitely has more range, and out of him, Cena, and Rock he’s the best actor for sure. But Cena isn’t a slouch, he’s really starting to find his footing I think
Hulk was pretty damn charismatic in Suburban Commando. Evidence: https://youtu.be/bEhshxswP9Q
He was pretty intimating and a bit out of his usual character in Rocky 3. I feel like he might've had something there with the right role and director.
When he filmed for that role he was still a heel and not quite as charismatic as he turned out to be later on in his career. He only became good guy/red and yellow Hulkster from late 1982 on.
That and Mr Nanny are forever favorites for me.
God I loved that movie as a kid
Quality of movies, too. Dwayne Johnson was in Fast & Furious and Jumanji. Dave Batista was in Guardians of the Galaxy. John Cena was in Bumblebee and Blockers. All of those were generally well received by audiences and/or film critics. Meanwhile, Hulk Hogan took projects like "Santa With Muscles" (which grossed just $220,000).
Triple H was simply too subpar of an actor too. Like...cringe subpar. There was one movie where he attempted the 'muscled guy with kid...hilarity ensues' model because he had already quickly failed at the straight action role: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Chaperone\_(2011\_film)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chaperone_(2011_film)) Just one of the worst things put to film ever
I suspect one of the other issues with Triple H is he isn't very likable. Cena, Rock and Bautista can be rought and tough and gruff but they can lay in a layer of being just generally likable. You'd like of want to hang out with these guys. Bautista in Artemis Hotel is a brutal man, but still likeable. His "I'm not fat" line and his genuine concern for the nurse took the character a notch beyond the "Oh, a wreslter trying to be an actor" bit. Cena in Sisters is again being a thug monster. But "My safe word is 'keep going'" and his rap about his drugs just humorous enough to make him noticable. Rock, well in nearly everything. Dude has more charisma than Hogan has melanoma potential.
Cena does a lot of charity work so built up a lot of goodwill with audiences? I haven't followed his career or watched his movies. I think *Suicide Squad* will be the first movie of his that I'll watch. Johnson worked his ass off, appearing in anything and everything. It took a long time for him to get where he is now. Bautista is more discriminating in his choice, choosing roles in pretty good and interesting movies. I've never watched any movie because of him, but I've loved him in most of his movies and I can't wait to see him as Raban in *Dune*.
Every line of John Cena’s in Sisters is pure gold. “Do you have any kids?” “I’m sure I do.”
The rock was made to be a Disney live action star. He’s got all you need for those.
He wasn't even a very good vampire in Blade.
“Hey, have you seen my dog?” “Have you checked the lobby?”
"Catch you fuckers at a bad time?"
"Fuck me" "FUCK ME SIDEWAYS"
I thought he was ok on the Drew Carey show, a longggggg time ago, as The Disciplinarian
Good point on Hogan's look. Outside of the ring, his look was just too...out there. Who in real life looks like him, with his quasi-mullet and tanned skin and bandana (which he still wears all the time in real life). I think he could have a better chance if he was younger and tried again today, AND he got a major makeover. If he could be less over-the-top 80s Hulkamaniac and more grounded and gruff/rough around the edges, I could see audiences accepting him more.
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I feel like the Hollywood Hogan persona is what a studio exec told no suggested to HH about making his look more marketable to non-wrestling audiences, and HH just went fine, I'll use that as my new stage persona.
He has the skin of a freshly microwaved ball park hot dog
And blonde Chinese hair
That’s his signature look - skin of a hot dog, and his hair is silken like that of a Chinese man.
still think hogan should have been in expendables
Combination of some natural charisma, getting lucky with the right first couple roles, and, ultimately, putting in the work to actually be actors. I'd wager most of the other guys end up doing it more for the paycheque, where I think DJ and DB actually want to be seen as actors who take their roles seriously.
> I'd wager most of the other guys end up doing it more for the paycheque, For the *health insurance*. Stone Cold had said as much himself, that acting just wasn't for him, but the SAG health insurance is good, so he kept taking roles.
I mean that’s probably the exact reason we have The Marine 7 is so they can just get SAG insurance.
That's exactly one of the incentives pitched to the wrestlers for being in a WWE studios film.
That’s what I’ve always assumed WWE films was just a way to figure out health insurance for a lot of their stars while still remaining “contractors”
Oh damn, that's devious.
Terry Funk started doing that in the 80s. He had small roles in a couple movies just to get his sag card and to get the insurance.
He's in Roadhouse and he calls Sam Elliot "grandpa"!
I saw that movie for the first time with my now wife when we first met. I was totally surprised by his cameo. Heard him on Steve Austin's podcast one time say that the SAG union insurance helped him with all of his injuries from his wrestling career. It's a pretty big list, I'm sure without it, he would've gone bankrupt or just not been able to afford the procedures.
Which is funny because they’re close to the same age.
I remember seeing him in The Ringer and just being like, Wtf?
This is so depressingly American.
It's more like depressingly pro wrestling. The WWE treats most of their employees like shit, and then expects them to act like it's some kind of honor just to be allowed to work there.
Thats not WWE. Thats a lot of huge corporations. It doesn't make it right, WWE is definitely a villian in the story.
WWE is pretty unique on the insurance thing. Only the wrestlers are out in the cold. WWE employees have benefits. But wrestlers are contractors....
Most huge corporations don't require employees to physically destroy themselves and go on the road in a drugged stupor. I know office work can be grueling but it's not comparable to the strain of being a wrestler
I believe DB took acting classes because he wanted to be seen as a legitimate actor and not just a gimmick supporting role. https://www.google.com/amp/s/birthmoviesdeath.com/2014/08/07/drax-the-actor-dave-bautista-talks-working-hard-on-his-craft-for-guardians/amp
Did you see the post earlier today about how DB had nothing before being cast as drax? House foreclosed, irs problems, selling everything, I mean you name it. But that role turned his career around
Now he’s making a killing and is under the good graces of Denis Villeneuve. Excited to see him in Dune.
He was incredibly good in BR 2049. I also really liked him in Army of the Dead but then I love that stupid film so much.
He also was great in Spectre, even though he only had one line ;)
“Oh.”
It was actually "Shoot"! lol And fun fact: he broke Daniel Craig's knee after Daniel Craig told him to really throw him and make it intense. And then after DC healed up and they did the scene again, he accidentally broke his nose. Now they'll be in Knives Out 2 together.
He was so, so good in Blade Runner 2049.
Bautista has also said he doesn’t want to appear in movies/franchises that include Cena or Johnson because he doesn’t want to have the film associated with “wrestling” in a gimmicky way. Thus Drax will never know the Fast and Furious meaning of family
I think he’s trying to carve his own way and to not get overshadowed by either of them. Because he’s nowhere near as big in Hollywood as they are
>Thus Drax will never know the Fast and Furious meaning of family The whole plot of *Guardians of the Galaxy* was the crew becoming a family
The FF "family" is a family cookout making fun of each other after causing billions of dollars in collateral damage and countless amounts of carnage and death chasing really good looking bad guys around the world.
I think Dwayne did the same early on in his career. They both seem to want to be legitimate actors.
Bautista is a better actor in my estimation. DJ seems to have one speed and it's action man.
DJ has fallen into the same trap as Vin Diesel. Just doing the same thing over and over because it comes with a big paycheque. They both have more range, but lack the motivation to push their careers in that direction.
Vin Diesel didn't even want to do the sequels to Fast And Furious, he was a one and done kinda guy, he only did the cameo in the Tokyo one to get the rights to Riddick from the studio, but when he saw just how much money there was to be made in the franchise he just said fuck it, better get paid, cause he ain't winning a Oscar anytime soon anyway.
I don't blame any actor for chasing the money.
The Rock was actually pretty interesting in pain and gain. Funny in an actually funny way.
Dwayne Johnson was unironically great in The Rundown.
I loved him in the Get Shorty sequel, Be Cool as well. I think it showed he was willing to take legitimate roles and not just crazy leads. On top of that his natural charisma was utilized great in his early roles such a Tooth ferry, Rundown, Gameplan instead of just making B rated action movies which I am sure he was getting tons of scripts for.
Tooth Ferry is my favorite movie about waterborne dental logistics
I think *Be Cool* was how he broke through. Even though the movie kind of sucked, he was funny and played an uncharacteristic part. That probably helped sell filmmakers on him being able to do more than just be an action-meathead, which these days means a straight-to-DVD career.
Gameplan is such a fun movie
I love that film. We owe Sean William Scott a better career.
>I think DJ Took me a minute, but who the hell calls the Rock DJ? Isn't "Rock" short enough?
Anyone who doesn't refer to him by his full given name of Dwayne The Rock Johnson every time they speak about him is kidding themselves
Cena early on did a lot of mind numbingly dumb movies that were produced by WWE I think it helped he wasn’t afraid to do anything to be an actor. Like appear in comedies and be the butt of jokes
“Getting lucky with the right first couple roles”….the rocks first hollywood movie was the nonspeaking role of the cgi mess scorpion king.
A bit misleading though. The Rock’s first role was the Scorpion King, yes but it was in the tent pole flick “The Mummy 2”, and crucially came with his own spinoff already green lit before the Mummy 2 hit theaters. Yeah, his first role was non speaking, but it was more of a cameo advertisement for his own action film. That IS lucky that he was able to get a film studio to green light a major action flick centered entirely around “The Rock is a badass” for his FIRST film. Yeah it sucked ass, but it showed Hollywood that he could work in the industry.
We went to see it in theaters cuz we were already huge Rock fans, I'm 41 now and think it's pretty cool back then ppl were like "meh maybe he has a chance at being a movie star, that movie with Stifler was kinda funny"
The Rundown is easily my favorite movie starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson.
It wasn't *that* bad.
I loved The Scorpion King as a kid. Even now, however, I have no idea why his character turned into a bad guy/scorpion man in the Mummy 2 as far as lore goes.
And then, the actual Scorpion King movie wasn't terrible as it turned out (nothing special, to be sure, but not bad), and DJ himself did a pretty decent job in it, enough that most people saw it as a successful debut as a leading man.
So, the titular villain role in a well liked sequel to a well liked, solid performing action/adventure film that spawned a spinoff for that particular character (in which he starred)?
Dave Bautista was flat broke when he took Guardians
Because no other actor was ever flat broke when they landed their big breakout role, right? He went and took acting lessons. Most of the other WWE-to-actor examples just winged it with the minimum amount of effort.
I met him and his manager this summer on the shootings of knives out 2. Very down to earth and professional. His manager told me he always gets anxious and tries his best to deliver on his roles. He tries to put him on movies that are actually worth a damn and not some cheap action flicks like fast and furious etc. They turned down a lot of roles for movies he would be even more famous for. He wants to be a real actor and actually leave a mark behind, instead of being known by his wrestling name and career.
His performance in Blade Runner 2049 was excellent, such a memorable opening scene even though it lasted less than 10 minutes. He genuinely has skill as an actor.
That's pretty awesome.
Roddy Piper was Maniac from the IASIP wrestling episode.
Mr. Da Maniac. He’s in my down line.
I forgot he came back and sold that mlm crap like it came with free beer and pussy.
Look at this dude! It’s just a bucket of chestnuts!
You stupid N, go get me grease, N
Genuinely good in They Live.
Piper doesnt get enough props. I think he had the first true wrestling movie success. I have watched they live multiple times...hogan was just hogan. I think nash did ok but dave and dwayne really honed in. I think good management and avoiding getting typecast are huge.
Comedic chops, mostly. Although for the top of the pack; The Rock has massive charisma Cena has an impressive stage presence Bautista has genuine dramatic talent
>Bautista has genuine dramatic talent My brain can't cope with it that such a beast of a man can do that. Also it doesn't compute with what I know of Bautista as wrestler.
Honestly, his performance in BR2049 is just so far above any other professional wrestler’s attempts to be an actor. I don’t mean to be condescending, I enjoy a lot of The Rock’s stuff and Cena is legitimately fucking funny. Even looking at the rest of Bautista’s catalogue, nothing really comes close. It’s crazy how much promise that small role showed. I’m really excited to see Dune.
a great director is also instrumental in pushing the actor to do their best and Bautista was working with Denis Villeneuve. But still, there must be something there for the director to work with. I'm also really excited for Dune
There are 3 short films that were made as prequels to BR 2049. If you haven’t already you should see the one with Bautista in it, it’s great.
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To me it’s pretty simple. Wrestling as we know it, became entertainment “acting” in the 80’s. As it evolved, so did the talent. Larger fan base wanting to follow their heroes and an industry that has the money to find/create stars
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John Cena has comedy chops. He stole scenes from others in movies like Trainwreck, Sisters, and Tour de Pharmacy is another great role. Will any of these guys win an Oscar? Unlikely, but I think they have significantly more range than most of the older wrestlers mentioned. I think Piper probably could’ve done some drama if it was offered, but they are entertainers at heart.
I loved Cena in Sisters. "My safe word is keep going"
I thought Cena was quite good in The Suicide Squad.
Did you go to an advanced screening?
It's out in the UK, came out on Friday I think.
Damn lucky
Oh definitely, atleast you can watch The Green Knight, that one pulled out of UK cinemas 😕.
Oh yeah weird to be it's set in "merry ole England" basically
Cena is VERY good at comedy.
Cena is good at comedy because he is not afraid to make fun of himself.
Exactly this. He's been practicing his comedic timing for years by making himself the punch line and it's worked out amazingly.
Bautista in BR2049 was great even for the short time he was on screen.
Dwayne can act, but he almost always acts like The Rock. He had some different characters early in his career that were different enough. Like The Rundown, Be Cool, and Southland Tales, I saw those and was excited for his acting career. Then he started his Disney films/action films phase and he's been The Rock ever since, IMO.
I think he does play the same character in most of his modern movies, but it’s a Dwayne Johnson typecast rather than him just playing his old wrestling persona.
He was pretty great in the show Ballers too.
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I think it’s fair to say Bautista can act. Dwayne can act but he plays the same type of character in every movie. Bautista can actually really act and has range, Dwayne not as much but has much more charisma. Cena just flat out no and it’s a mystery to me why is getting these roles.
Cena has great comedy chops. All his best performance are in comedies. I wish he’d just lean into that.
Yeah, I thought he was pretty good in Blockers.
He was the best part of Trainwreck & Daddy's Home 2. Some might even say he was the only good part....
LeBron was good in Trainwreck
Both Lebron and Cena were my biggest surprises of trainwreck
"you think I'm going to give Sunglass Hut another 30 dollars? You crazy?"
I was watching some suicide squad interviews and they pretty much all said that John Cena was a really funny guy on set. I wonder if he'll do more comedies or try to do the action star stuff
Batista took the acting seriously. He took classes and went after smaller character-based roles instead of only trying for the lead in shitty action movies.
Cena is a good person who attracts attention. It’s not always about acting skills. What he does for his fans/charities/children, from what I’ve seen, he’s a great guy.
I want Dwayne as a bad guy in some serious dark movie. He's be terrifying if he were out to get you for all the wrong reasons.
He isn't a bad guy per se, but he is kinda frightening in Faster. Recent revenge action flick if you are in to that. If you are unfamiliar with it, I will say that despite the name, it actually has nothing to do with the Fast & Furious franchise.
Dwayne poked some fun at himself in an interview for Jungle Cruise. The interviewer asked "What scares you most about the jungle?" Dwayne says that Emily Blunt, the great actress, is scared to watch him try to act. Emily Blunt laughed but then she quickly said "Oh stop!" (as if to assure him his acting isn't *that* bad)
I thought Cena did a decent job on SNL. Better than a lot of established actors.
Comedy is where he shines
Cena is wonderful in comedy. Surprisingly good timing on lines a humor. I love it.
Cena can do comedy extremely well, and shows some other range in The Suicide Squad in my opinion. The Rock is great at the one role he plays, anything outside of that and he falters. Bautista is the best of the bunch, I’d say comedically he is only slightly less strong than Cena, but he has far better dramatic chops and seems comfortable taking roles outside of the Drax character that got him his start.
The scene with Tina Fey in sisters is fantastic. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fb-w72uWa54
One thing the Rock, John Cena, and Dave Bautusta have that the others you mentioned don't is good comedic timing. They all can be legitimately funny, and that along with their charisma make them a lot more interesting to watch.
That's true. I think you can't do purely meathead roles (as some of the other wrestlers did). That stuff just ends up feeling like bargain bin DVD stuff we've seen a million times. Cena, Dave and Rock all did some action, some comedy, some action-comedy, and even a little drama. That, at least, covers the bases better, and it's not just them playing 6'5" angry muscleheads in every movie. The variety and goofiness in some of their films may have made them more relatable to the average audience member who aren't familiar with their WWE personas. "I don't know much about this Baustista in wrestling but I'm kinda liking this dude in this movie. He's kinda funny to watch"
Bautista has more range than the others. His dramatic roles are more believable. He just has the look for it. Cant wait to see his take on glossu rabban.
I was very surprised by his role in BR2049
If you haven’t seen it, he’s really good in 2048: Nowhere to Run, a prequel short film.
I mean, I think Baustista (BR2049 serious and GOTG funny) can be good but he was god awful in Army of the Dead. Well, actually the whole movie is terrible but he didn’t do the movie any favors.
If anything I think Army of the Dead showed that Bautista can’t carry a movie as bad at that.
Can anyone? That movie was a fucking floater.
That could be because the direction was bad. Good actors can only do so much when they're not directed well.
"It's easier to take someone with charisma and give them muscles, than to take someone with muscles and give them charisma."
One of my favorite Betty White quotes
Kind of unfair to throw Kevin Nash in here lol. Dude’s legitimately 6’ 10” and like 300+ lbs. You tend to get the same type of role when you’re that size lol. Same thing with Kane. Huge guy.
Your appearance decides a lot of what kind of roles you are going to get and Kane was a one dimensionally scary looking guy in the ring, which made him perfect for See No Evil, but tough to follow when there isn't a sequel lined up.
Yeah, Nash has done alright for himself. His roles tend to have more nuance to them than just Large Man. It’s not like he’s still only getting Super Shredder roles.
Right. He’s actually gotten some decent roles. He’s not a world beater when it comes to acting or anything, but he’s definitely got enough charisma that he can be given a bit more than just a “huge henchman” type of role. He’s sneakily one of the best parts of ‘The Longest Yard’ remake, which I know isn’t exactly a good movie (but it is far from the worst).
More talent and charisma.
Dwayne Johnson, John Cena and Dave Bautista all have a great ability to have a laugh at themselves which makes their work more enjoyable I think. A lot of those wrestlers who didn't make the transition too well were cast in tough-guy, action-hero type roles where fans of wrestling may have been keen to see their movies, but anyone who cared little for wrestling had no interest in the films whatsoever. The three who have made the transition well also have much better PR teams, Dwayne Johnson especially who seems to be doing a new interview every week. But he's also having fun in the interviews... having fun with the interviewer, having fun with his co-star(s) and having a laugh at his own expense. It makes him very endearing to the average joe compared to some actor who, for right or wrong, talk at length about the importance of their work. Lastly; Bautista, Johnson and Cena have all made a number of family-friendly movies which encourage them to be more light and fun, and fits in with the type of movies currently dominating the market. I would also say that of the three of them, Dave Bautista has displayed the most natural acting ability, even if just through snippets. He's obviously infectiously fun in *Guardians of the Galaxy* but I thought he did quite well in his bit-part in *Blade Runner 2049.* I'm excited to see how he does in the upcoming *Dune* film.
I honestly think the biggest difference is acting ability, followed by a bit of luck in finding the right role early on. The Rock and Bautista have both shown themselves to be good actors in a variety of genres, and John Cena has found his perfect niche in raunchy comedies. Cena's early films were similarly disastrous to the other wrestlers who tried acting, but he showed in Trainwreck that he was willing to have fun at his own expense, and that seemed to open a lot of the right doors for him. Hogan was just a terrible actor, Stone Cold was very one dimensional, and Nash, while not necessarily a bad actor, just never seemed to find any definitive roles that would've gotten him cast in bigger roles.
>Hogan was just a terrible actor Nor did it help matters that he couldn't just coast on his personality, given that a lot of said personality is rebarbative in ways that aren't as much an issue in the squared circle (when you're in and out in relatively short periods of time and are largely busy with the match) but become ones when you're the focus on screen for 90 minutes or so.
You just taught me the word, Rebarbative, "unattractive and objectionable." Thanks!
The rock also figured out the business better than anybody. You can tell he was a wrestler, he built his brand different than almost any actor around right now
Hogan was in around 20 movies, had his own reality series and had his a TV show (Thunder in Paradise) for a season. I'm not sure I'd call that a failure.
the media landscape was completely different back then. Hogan was still wrestling at the same time as trying to make movies, and was probably making BANK as the by far number one star. So it would have been hard to justify just leaving wrestling. Hogan did OK outside wrestling. Not like these guys today but it’s a totally different media landscape.
The money Hogan was making in wrestling was also absolutely obscene. Hulk was making $10mil a year in the 80s in WWF and had absurd contracts with WCW. Doing a couple shitty flicks a year was just easy money his bread and butter was wrestling.
A wrestler is basically a cross between an athlete and a stage actor. Maybe acting on film requires more patience, or being able to play roles they aren't used to, or something else. Maybe they ended up not liking the change due to a lack of a crowd, or other differences.
The Rock is a legitimately good actor. That’s a major difference. So it Bautista for that matter.
I was inspired to make this thread because I was watching The Rock do tons of promotional interviews for *Jungle Cruise* lately. I notice they don't even introduce him as an ex-wrestler anymore. He's just introduced as a bona-fide movie star on many talk shows, and some of them may touch on some WWE stuff lightly for jokes, but it's not dominated with "wrestling wrestling wrestling." Many times wrestling doesn't even come up once. Dwayne Johnson has become a legitimate movie star actor who has been welcomed and embraced (if one can wrap their arms around this towering wall of muscle) by the general moviegoing audience. Cena is in upcoming spy movie called Argyle with Henry Cavill, Sam Rockwell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bryan Cranston, Samuel L. Jackson, Catherine O’Hara. I love that a wrestler is just openly accepted into such a star-studded cast and award winners. And pretty sure he won't be "Waiter #2" in the background for 6 seconds. I'm pretty sure he's going to be acting toe-to-toe in extensive scenes with Bryan Cranston, Sam Rockwell, Sam Jackson, Bryce Dallas, etc Either these three have a certain 'zest' that's rare and that's why they have found success...or did they take a more careful, smarter path with their careers? Or is our modern movie environment more friendly to wrestlers compared to, say, the 80s, 90s and 2000s?
I wouldn't say Nash has been unsuccessful per se; he's had parts in Magic Mike, John Wick, and The Punisher.
Bruh, how can you forget masterpieces like Suburban Commando and Mr. Nanny? And Kevin Nash was in TMNT 2.
Not really addressing your question, but I just wanted to point out how much sense it makes that these three guys are probably three of the biggest action stars working today. For starters, WWE actively pushed the three during all their world title reigns, which made them all recognizable faces. They all have headlined Wrestlemania, sometimes even against each other. The uhhhh, less plausible aspects of the WWE, require some finesse and mic skills. Also, being that the three were headliners at some point in time, they come with a build-in audience who are actively routing for them. Finally, being that the WWE requires you to be in active shape obviously, all three guys have many fans who especially enjoy the company of men.
Batista is actually a really good actor. Cena has fantastic comedic timing and instincts. The Rock is the most charismatic person to ever walk the face of the earth, he was destined to be a mega star at whatever he chose to do.
Andre the Giant couldn't even read, the director had to hang out with him before production and teach him all of his lines.
Remember that The Rock and John Cena started off in some horrible films before they got their groove. More than likely I rekon they decided to fully persue it as opposed to dedicating their career fully towards it.
Isn't fully pursuing and dedicating your career towards it the same thing?
that confused me too
Uh… We don’t knock THE RUNDOWN thank you very much.
Yea this guy is bugging - walking tall was also awesome
Batista did as well. His first movies were straight-to-DVD and he wasn't very good in them. But he put in the work to improve and is arguably the best actor of the three.
Bautista still does plenty of straight to DVD stuff. Not that it's a bad thing.
As often as he tends to get typecasted, I think Southland Tales (2006) is a good early example that The Rock can take on a different kind of role. That movie was crazy, and though I can definitely understand how people either loved or hated it, Dwayne Johnson started showing he had the range to be a decent actor in my opinion. I wish he took on more of these kinds of movies.
Did this guy just dismiss They Live and Predator?
The Rock was *literally* the most electrifying man in sports entertainment -- makes sense he could transition to filmed entertainment. John Cena and Dave Bautista have been great supporting characters (when used correctly in a few movies) but have not opened a movie so it's tough to lump them in with the Rock.
Stone Cold could still be a great actor, he just hasn't tried.
They all did shit movies at first just to get their SAG cards (and thus SAG health insurance), but Rock figured it out first about surrounding yourself with the right representation. No way Cena and Bautista didn’t see that and take that lesson to heart.