Acting has been a pretty solid second career for some of the top pro wrestlers of the last few decades. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is the best example, as he moved almost seamlessly from WWE superstar to one of the most famous actors in the world. John Cena has done pretty well for himself as well, and Hulk Hogan arguably paved the way for everyone to follow.
But when it comes to mastering the actual craft of acting, is there someone who has outshone all of them? Chris Jericho thinks there is.
The eight-time world champion discussed this very topic on First We Feast’s Truth or Dab, and he said the one who has topped them all is Dave Bautista, the artist formerly known to wrestling fans as WWE Hall of Famer Batista.
I would say the best actor of all of them is Bautista. I think his work and his diversity, from what I’ve seen, I think he’s the best actual actor. And then I’ll put Dwayne Johnson, Cena and Hulk Hogan after that. Although “Santa with Muscles” … chef’s kiss.
Bautista may be best known to the moviegoing masses for his role as Drax in the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise. But he’s shown a great deal of range in his roles over the past few years, moving beyond genre fare to comedy (“My Spy”), mystery (“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”) and psychological horror (“A Knock at the Cabin”).
He’s also gone on the record as saying he doesn’t try to emulate Johnson’s star power, but is in it for the satisfaction of nailing a role and recognition as “a good f—ing actor.” It appears he is well on his way to achieving that, especially from his former wrestling peers.
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