Spectre Star Dave Bautista has Triumphed in Sports Entertainment and Mixed Martial Arts. Now he wants to Pin Hollywood Typecasting to the Mat.
AT 6'4" AND 265 POUNDS, DAVE BAUTISTA seems like an unlikely choice to play Hamlet. The mural of tattoos down his barn-door-size back and the road map of veins running through his shoulders and arms suggest a dude who can bench press more than four plates, win six world titles in WWE, and beat a man into submission inside a mixed martial arts cage. Bautista, of course, has done all the above. But if you think the man known to sports-entertainment fans as “the Animal” can’t put a beating on somebody and then entertain you with a sonnet, you’re selling Bautista short.
Don’t do that again.
The villain of last winter’s James Bond film, Spectre, now has movie stardom in his sights and a stage production of Shakespeare on his bucket list.
An Unlikely Thespian
It’s especially funny to think of Bautista’s long-term ambition in contrast to his humble upbringing, which was as far from puffy shirts, frilly necklines, and Elizabethan English as one could get. Raised in a tough section of Washington, D.C., Bautista sought protection through weight training. He bulked up to 370 pounds and worked as a bouncer until, at age 30, he decided to take a shot at sports entertainment. Despite a successful run in WWE, Bautista was unhappy with the direction the business was headed (away from the “attitude era” to a more family-friendly product), and in 2010 he left to pursue acting.
“I did some work on a film for a friend,” he says, “and I realized what a horrible actor I was.” The movie, Wrong Side of Town, was directed by one of Bautista’s buddies, who thought he had the look to pull off the character of a Navy SEAL badass. “I was so embarrassed, but it made me want to do it again and do it better.”
Denne historien er fra October 2016-utgaven av Flex.
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Denne historien er fra October 2016-utgaven av Flex.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Compounded Interest
The collective power of compound exercises.
After The O
The post-O tour and the champ’s visit down under.
Structure
Family time, Kevin Levrone, and thoughts about the Vegas shooting.
The Great Indoors
HOW DOES THE CHAMP PREFER TO SPEND HIS FREE TIME?
Squat Less?
You Don't Need The So-called King Of Exercises To Build Tree Trunks.
Olympia Win, Take 7
Following a Seventh Mr. Olympia Victory— Tying Him With the “goat,” Arnold Schwarzenegger— Phil Heath Put His Win in Historical Perspective as Only He Can.
Under Pressure
My Reflections on Finishing Seventh at the Mr. Olympia— and What I Will Do to Break Into the Top Five.
The Other Guys
A Look at the Pros Rounding Out the 2017 212 Olympia’s Top Five.
"That Good"
Fresh Off a Hands-down Olympia Victory That Ties Him With Dorian Yates on the All-time List, Phil Heath Talks About His Latest Statement Win.
The Pec'ing Order
One of the Most Popular Bodybuilders in Ifbb History Is Older, Wiser—and Still a Force in the Pro Ranks. Here, Dominican Dominator Victor Martinez Takes on Chest Training While Revealing His Competitive Plans for 2017.
