Recasting FX's 'Justified' with WWE Superstars

Justified is the hit show on FX which stars Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, a US Marshall who has personal problems which affect his career as a Marshall when he is relocated to his home state following a shootout with a Florida gun-runner.

The show is a huge success for FX and a critical darling. Based off the Elmore Leonard short story, Fire in the Hole, the show has gained a reputable following for great writing and incredible acting by the cast and guest stars.

Every so often, I will take a popular franchise and recast the characters with WWE superstars as something fun and as a change from the usual WWE stuff we get every day.

In the past, I have done these for LOST, Community and The Avengers. I decided it was time to take the best drama on television and put it through the same process.

Some of these comparisons will make more sense than others, so if you feel like you have a better idea, please share it in the comments section below.

Randy Orton Is Boyd Crowder

Boyd Crowder, played by the superbly talented Walter Goggins, is television's most intriguing and complex character.

Constantly switching sides and playing everyone, you never quite know if Boyd is telling you the truth, and if he is, he might just be doing it to help himself.

The path Boyd has taken in the show has seen him as both a murderer and a savior, and this is all just when it comes to his own gang.

His relationship with Raylan is unique, as both men have hurt one another, but they seem to hold some kind of affection for each other having grown up in the same position.

When it comes to the duality of man, there is no better superstar to pick than Randy Orton. Orton is someone who is considered a good guy, but he will drop another good guy with an RKO at the drop of a hat.

Orton and Crowder seem like the best possible fit.

Jim Ross Is Art Mullen

Art Mullen is Raylan's boss, but more importantly, he is the one man on the show who seems to have a grip of what is truly right and wrong.

He may walk a fine line when it comes to Raylan, but that is because he trusts Raylan as a lawman more than he trusts the others.

Art is funny but stern and he has the ability to take things and summarize them with a few pithy, southern phrases.

Jim Ross is really the only man I can compare to Art because they sometimes seem like the only two sane people in two insane worlds.

Their ages also make them a more apt comparison than some of the others.

Eve Is Ava

This one was too easy. It's like Eve just set this up and let me take the ball and run with it.

Not to even touch on the fact that they have similar names, these are two of the most manipulative characters played by gorgeous women in WWE or Justified.

Ava is intelligent, pretty and able to justify her terrible deeds by rationalizing that she was doing what was best for her.

Eve is similar in that she is conniving and will use others to get ahead, even if she knows it is wrong.

Aside from the fact that both women are devious, how could I not make the comparison with names like Eve and Ava?

Stephanie McMahon Is Winona

Winona is an interesting character because she has done things that are wrong, but she knows they were wrong and later regretted them.

She is a good person overall, and she is the love of Raylan's life and yet manages to walk away from him despite his promise to move away with her.

Stephanie is someone who may not have all of the same characteristics as Winona, but she shares a few things, which makes the comparison valid.

Both Winona and Stephanie are smart, beautiful, driven women who have had success in a world dominated by men.

Stephanie may have been evil more than Winona has been, but both women share many characteristics, which make them a good comparison.

Michael Cole Is Arlo

Arlo Givens is Raylan's father and also one of the show's antagonists. He has been a criminal since before Raylan was born and he never looks to want to stop.

He is a man whose morals extend to those he loves and he couldn't care less about anyone else. He even started to go a bit crazy in the last season.

Michael Cole is someone who has the moral compass of a pirate, and that is why he and Arlo are a perfect match.

Neither Arlo nor Cole really pose a physical threat to anyone else, but they have both been known to use others to further their own enterprises.

If Michael Cole ever gets dementia, he will be more like Arlo than ever.

CM Punk and John Cena Are Raylan Givens

I could not decide which superstar matched up to Raylan better: CM Punk or John Cena?

Raylan is a man who respects the law and will do anything to bring fugitives to justice, even if it means bending the law himself.

He also cares deeply for those who matter to him and he will go to great lengths to protect them, but he is also a man whose temper can get the better of him.

Raylan is not a good Marshall, but he is a great lawman, and that is why Art keeps him around.

John Cena shares Raylan's sense of right and wrong, while Punk shares Raylan's sarcastic approach to solving problems.

If you could combine the stubbled look and attitude of Punk with the morals and drive of John Cena, then you would have a Raylan clone who knows how to apply a figure-four.

*****

Thanks for reading and please feel free to share any comparisons you feel are more accurate than the ones listed.

If you liked this, then please take a moment and check out my previous "recasting with WWE superstars" articles.

Recasting Lost

Recasting Community

Recasting The Avengers