The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has been a significant entertainment industry which is globally recognized as one of the most famous entertainment industry in the world. Though wrestling have been in practice since a very long time, The WWE has been in existence since over sixty years ago and it has really served as one of the most entertaining spot for people till date.
Talking about wrestling whether it's a sport or entertainment: Wrestling can in one way or the other be likened to sport but choreographic in practice. If you've been a real fan of (professional) wrestling, then you might have discovered by now that all the moves that's displayed while the fight is on are so calculated. The performances are all predetermined (if not rigidly choreographed) to maximize the entertainment value to the audience, and reduce the chances of the performers suffering real-life injuries, like concussions, that could end their career. Although almost everything about the present day wrestling that we know is choreographed, a lot of things can go wrong while wrestlers are in the ring entertaining their audience.
In 1998 when the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) was still World Wrestling Federation (WWF), Mick Foley known by his stage name "Mankind" received numerous injury after performing a very dangerous stunt in Undertaker Vs. Mankind Hell in a Cell fight. Foley received numerous legitimate injuries performing the stunts, and the match had little impact on his career in the short-term, but eventually became the match he is most remembered for. We also have some other situations where a normal match went wrong. Scott Steiner aka "Big Poppa Pump" was another victim of such situation. He was hospitalized after receiving a kick in his throat which requires a surgery to help the poor man stay alive. We also have Owen Hart who died in front of thousands of audience after a stunt went wrong. It is safe to say that wrestling is like playing a pre-recorded tape in front of the audience, but sometimes some stuffs goes out hand especially when these guys are performing stunts and the blood this guys shed are real. So one can say that wrestler who understands how to put the choreographed fight into display in front of the audience in such a professional way can actually be regarded as a professional wretsler. Dwayne Johnson, Triple H, John Cena, Hulk Hogan, Vince McMahon, The Undertaker e.t.c are examples of Professional wrestlers.
Now the World Wrestling Entertainment has done more than just producing wrestlers but also producing fine actors. Already from a general point of view, it takes more than an actor to become a wrestler and that explains why most of these wrestlers are doing great in the film industry. In recent times a lot of these professional wrestlers have turned to acting and most of them have done real well with their acting carrier. Dwayne Johnson and John Cena are two wrestlers who turned to acting during the early stage of their carrier and these two guys has appeared in a lot of nice and successful movies. Who would have thought that a time will come that Dwayne Johnson aka "The rock" will be the highest paid actor. Dave Bautista on the other hand is another wrestler who's also appeared in a lot of succesful movies and it's hard to mention top 3 most successful wrestlers-turned-actor without mentioning "The Animal".
So here we're going to talk about few professional wrestlers who are not just faces that cheers the audience in the wrestling ring but also faces to watch out for in movie posters. Let's begin the countdown
5) STEVE AUSTIN (STONE COLD)
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin (born Steven James Anderson; December 18, 1964; later Steven James Williams) is an American actor, producer, television host, and professional wrestler. Austin started his professional wrestling career after playing college football at the University of North Texas. He became "Stunning" Steve Austin in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1991 to 1995, using the character of a handsome man who relied on his good looks and flowing blonde hair. After a brief stint in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) in late 1995, he signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) under the ring name of The Ringmaster. The following year, having grown a goatee and shaved his head due to going bald, he was repackaged as "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.
The professional Wrestler started his acting career in the 2000s. Stone Cold has appeared in multiple movies but is widely known for his role in "The Expendables". He has started in multiple roles before the 2010 movie but the success of the movie increase the rate at which his appearance and performance is recognized and rated. He played the role of an antagonistic badass and give Sylvester Stallone a very hard time during their fight. He took on an unbelievable role as well in "Grown Ups" sequel and one would wonder if the soft hearted man at the concluding scenes of the movie is our dear ruthless Steve. He's also starred in The Smosh, The Condemned, The longest yard to mention a few. Though Steve Austins Movie career is not that loud compared to the likes of John Cena, Dwayne Johnson and the rest, he's proven that he's got more to offer in the movie industry.
4) HUKL HOGAN
Terry Eugene Bollea (born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler, television personality, actor, entrepreneur, and musician. According to IGN, Hogan is "the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 1980s". Hogan began his professional wrestling career in 1977, but gained worldwide recognition after signing for World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) in 1983. There, his persona as a heroic all-American helped usher in the 1980s professional wrestling boom, where he headlined the first nine editions of WWF's flagship annual event, WrestleMania. During his initial run, Hogan also won the WWF Championship five times, with his first reign holding the record for the second-longest in company history. Additionally, he is the first wrestler to win consecutive Royal Rumble matches, winning in 1990 and 1991.
Hogan's crossover popularity led to several television and movie roles. Early in his career Bollea played the part of Thunderlips in Rocky III (1982). He also appeared in No Holds Barred (1989), before starring in family films Suburban Commando (1991), Mr. Nanny (1993), Santa with Muscles (1996), and 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998).[268] Hogan also appeared in 1992 commercials for Right Guard deodorant. He starred in his own television series, Thunder in Paradise, in 1994. He is the star of The Ultimate Weapon (1997), in which Brutus Beefcake also appears in a cameo.
Bollea also starred in a pair of television movies, originally intended as a pilot for an ongoing series for TNT, produced by Eric Bischoff. The movies, Shadow Warriors: Assault on Devil's Island and Shadow Warriors: Hunt for The Death Merchant, starred Hogan alongside Carl Weathers and Shannon Tweed as a freelance mercenary team. In 1995, he appeared on TBN's Kids Against Crime. Bollea made cameo appearances in Muppets from Space, Gremlins 2: The New Batch (the theatrical cut) and Spy Hard as himself. Hogan also played the role of Zeus in Little Hercules in 3D. Hogan also made two appearances on The A-Team (in 1985 and 1986), along with Roddy Piper. He also appeared on Suddenly Susan in 1999. In 2001, Hogan guest-starred on an episode of Walker, Texas Ranger.
Hogan has become a busy voice actor in later years making guest voice spots on Robot Chicken and American Dad! and as a primary actor in the Cartoon Network/Adult Swim series China, Illinois.
3) JOHN CENA
John Felix Anthony Cena Jr. (born April 23, 1977) is an American professional wrestler, actor, and television presenter. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is currently signed to the WWE on a part-time deal, is the current host of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? on Nickelodeon and has starred in various films. Born and raised in West Newbury, Massachusetts, Cena moved to California in 1998 to pursue a career as a bodybuilder. He transitioned to professional wrestling in 1999 when he debuted for Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW). He signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) in 2001, where he was initially assigned to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). He gained fame in the WWE after adopting the persona of a trash-talking rapper. He won his first singles title, the United States Championship, in 2004. The next year, he won the WWE Championship for the first time, and his character subsequently transitioned into a clean-cut "Superman-like" hero. He then led the company as its franchise player and its public face for the next decade.
John Cena has starred in multiple blockbuster movies which includes The Marine ( 2006, which is his first movie full of action and really made some waves as at the time of production),12 Rounds (2009), Trainwreck (2015), Ferdinand (2017), Bumblebee (2018). John Cena is going to be a new face in the F9, a sequel to the Fast and Furious series which is going to come into theaters in 2021. He played the role of Dominic Toretto's (Vin Diesel) brother, Jakob Toretto who has been away for a very long time and has arrived to change the game, not minding if his brother is part of the game.
2) DAVE BAUTISTA
David Michael Bautista Jr. (born January 18, 1969) is an American actor, retired professional wrestler, former mixed martial artist and bodybuilder. Bautista began his wrestling career in 1999, and signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) in 2000. From 2002 to 2010, he gained fame under the ring name Batista and became a six-time world champion by winning the World Heavyweight Championship four times and the WWE Championship twice. He holds the record for the longest reign as World Heavyweight Champion at 282 days and has also won the World Tag Team Championship three times (twice with Ric Flair and once with John Cena) and the WWE Tag Team Championship once (with Rey Mysterio). He was the winner of the 2005 Royal Rumble match and went on to headline WrestleMania 21, one of the top five highest-grossing pay-per-view events in professional wrestling history.[6] Bautista re-signed with WWE in 2013, going on to win the 2014 Royal Rumble match and headline WrestleMania XXX before again departing that June. In October 2018, Bautista made his second return to WWE and faced Triple H at WrestleMania 35 in April 2019, before retiring from wrestling.
Bautista began acting in 2006 and has starred in The Man with the Iron Fists (2012), Riddick (2013), the James Bond film Spectre (2015), and Blade Runner 2049 (2017).[7] In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he has played the role of Drax the Destroyer in the films Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019) which was a critical and commercial success. He also starred in My Spy (2020) as a special agent who is stuck with an intelligent young girl after his identity as an undercover agent is exposed to her. His role as Drax the Destroyer has skyrocketed his acting career as of recent and this has helped placed him in top spots as one of the best wrestlers with a successful acting career.
1) DWAYNE JOHNSON (THE ROCK)
Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American-Canadian actor, producer, businessman, retired professional wrestler, and former American football and Canadian football player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he wrestled for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, later WWE) for eight years prior to pursuing an acting career. His films have grossed over $3.5 billion in North America and over $10.5 billion worldwide,[8] making him one of the world's highest-grossing actors.
Johnson entered Hollywood and the film industry, becoming a star initially through his wrestling popularity and noted work ethic. Over his acting career, he became one of the highest paid and most successful actors in Hollywood. He began his acting career on television while wrestling. In his first television acting job, in 1999, he played his own father in an episode of That '70s Show called "That Wrestling Show". Nearly a year later, he appeared in the Star Trek: Voyager episode "Tsunkatse" as an alien wrestler who fought popular character Seven of Nine. While Johnson was away from WWE, the company continued to sell "The Rock" merchandise, and he continued to be featured prominently in the opening montages of their television shows.
Johnson began his theatrical career in The Mummy Returns (2001), The Scorpion King (2002), the action-comedy The Rundown (2003) and the Walking Tall (2004). He played a supporting role in Be Cool (2005) and was the primary antagonist in Doom (2005). He also had roles in Gridiron Gang (2006), Reno 911!: Miami (2007), and Southland Tales (2006). He played a cocky famous American football player in The Game Plan (2007) and Agent 23 in Get Smart (2008). He presented the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects at the 80th Academy Awards.
Johnson's first leading film role was in The Scorpion King (2002). He has since starred in many successful films, including The Game Plan (2007), Tooth Fairy (2010), Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (2012), G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013), Hercules (2014), San Andreas (2015), Central Intelligence, Moana (both 2016), Rampage, and Skyscraper (both 2018). His role as Luke Hobbs in Fast & Furious, beginning with Fast Five (2011), helped it become one of the highest-grossing film franchises. Johnson also stars in the Jumanji franchise, appearing in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) and Jumanji: The Next Level (2019).
As at 2019 and 2020, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is not just the wrestler with the most successful acting career, but the highest paid actor in the world. He has achieved a feat no wrestler has ever achieved in history.
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