When Hollywood Meets WWE: 10 Actors Who Would Make the Greatest Wrestling Stars

Professional wrestlers are athletes first, but they also have to be actors. They need to convince us they are good or evil and have to perform for the crowd in the ring and on the mic.

Some Superstars are so good at the acting part of their job it becomes hard to separate the person from the character.

The Undertaker is a great example of someone who is always acting. Some wrestlers get to focus on wrestling during their matches, but The Deadman always has to be The Deadman when the cameras are rolling.

We have seen Superstars like The Rock and Batista make successful transitions from pro wrestling to acting, so the reverse could also be possible.

Hollywood stars get to pretend to be tough, but some of them could do quite well as pro wrestlers thanks to their appearance, physicality, charisma or a combination of all three traits.

This article will look at the 10 actors who could have had great careers in WWE had they chosen to take a different path in life.

Hugh Jackman

Unlike most of the people on this list, Hugh Jackman has punched a pro wrestler in the face. It happened during an appearance on Raw during a match between Zack Ryder and Dolph Ziggler, but his showdown with Damien Sandow as Magneto was more entertaining. 

Jackman is a versatile actor who can do just about anything. He sings, dances and has a quick wit, but most people associate him with playing one of the most popular mutants in Marvel history.

His run as Wolverine spanned 17 years across eight films if you count his cameo in X-Men: First Class. He got himself into great shape for the first movie, but he was able to increase his size with each film until he maxed out his physique for The Wolverine in 2013.

Jackman's commitment to the character is why people loved him in the role, even if the solo spin-offs were a little disappointing at times.

Had he chosen to pursue a career in the ring, Jackman's good looks, charisma and physical capabilities would have given him a great shot at having a successful wrestling career.

Linda Hamilton

When Linda Hamilton appeared in the first Terminator film, Sarah Connor was a clueless waitress with a bad '80s haircut. By the time T2 rolled around, she had completely transformed.

Hamilton did an outstanding job of playing a woman who was pulled into a world filled with killer robots and time travel in the original, but she took it to another level in the sequel.

Instead of the bubbly waitress, she had become a hardened warrior who would stop at nothing to protect her son from the evil forces trying to kill him.

Had it not been for Hamilton's strong performance in T2, the movie would not have become the classic it is considered to be today. She took the character from words on a page and made her a legend.

Pro wrestlers have to convince the world they are as tough as the characters they are playing, and few actors have been as believable in that context as Hamilton.

Wesley Snipes

A lot of actors who play martial arts experts go through months of training before filming so that their performance looks real, but some actors know how to kick some butt.

Wesley Snipes is such a mainstay in action films because he is a black belt in a few different disciplines.

With his fighting skills, sense of humor and muscular physique, Snipes would have been the kind of wrestler WWE CEO Vince McMahon would salivate over.

The great thing about Snipes is his underrated versatility. He is mostly known for playing tough guys, but he has flexed both his comedic and dramatic acting muscles to great acclaim in films such as New Jack City, Waiting to Exhale and To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar.

Snipes was at his peak in the '90s, so had he pursued a wrestling career, we could have seen Blade fight the likes of Triple H, Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan.

Josh Holloway

When Lost premiered in 2004, it took everybody by surprise. What looked like a dramatic version of Gilligan's Island was actually a science-fiction mystery with one of the best casts in television history.

Many of the characters and the actors playing them captured our hearts and minds with their stirring performances and interesting backstories, but one of the most popular from the beginning was Josh Holloway's Sawyer.

The laid-back con artist with a bad temper went from potential antagonist to one of the series' most heroic and endearing characters, and Holloway's performance is to thank for that.

Even if it did always seem like his hair was a little too perfect for a castaway on a tropical island, Holloway brought depth to what could have been a one-dimensional character. 

He was convincing as one of the badasses of the group because he could stare a hole right through somebody between wisecracks. He had enough muscle to be dangerous and more southern charm than he knew what to do with.

Had McMahon gotten hold of him before his Hollywood career took off, Holloway would have been one of the greatest heels of all time.

Danai Gurira

The name Danai Gurira might not be familiar to everyone, but if you are a fan of The Walking Dead, you know why she is on this list.

No matter how hard they try, some actors just cannot convince the audience they are as tough as the character they are playing. Gurira is not one of them.

Her time playing Michonne on TWD has made her into one of television's best heroines, and her role in the upcoming Black Panther movie will further cement her as one of the toughest women in Hollywood.

Whether she's wielding a katana against zombies or sitting on Chris Hardwick's couch talking about fighting zombies with said katana, Gurira has the kind of presence most actors can only dream of.

Something about her makes you want to keep watching. Maybe it's that unknowable it factor people always talk about.

She has proved herself to be capable of being intimidating and getting physical, which are the two most important traits a wrestler can possess other than mat skills. She would have been an awesome women's champion.

Michael Cudlitz

Michonne isn't the only warrior from The Walking Dead who could have been great in the ring. Michael Cudlitz—better known to many as Abraham, The King of the One-Liner—would make a perfect pro wrestler.

While his time in Hollywood has given him ample chance to show off his physical abilities, it's his acting chops that make him perfectly suited to stepping into the ring.

Cudlitz has the ability to make his ridiculous lines into the most memorable part of any episode he appears in, and that would be hugely beneficial when it came time to deliver a promo.

None of Abraham's best quotes can be reprinted here without heavy censorship, but anyone who has seen TWD probably has a few favorites.

Just think about what it would have been like to see Abraham and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin trade one-liners. It would have been epic.

Jennifer Lawrence

With an Academy Award, three Golden Globes and two massively popular action film franchises to her name, Jennifer Lawrence has done more in her 27 years on Earth than most will do in their lifetime.

Whats even more amazing is how she managed to get this far after getting her big break on the forgettable Bill Engvall Show.

Most actors who start on sitcoms have a hard time being taken seriously for any other roles, but something about Lawrence convinced Debra Granik to cast her in Winter's Bone, and her career skyrocketed from there.

After four Hunger Games and a trio of X-Men films, J-Law has more than proved her physical prowess. Had she chosen a career in the ring, Lawrence could have become one of the biggest babyfaces in the women's division.

While the odds of seeing her step into the ring are about as good as the odds of hitting a trifecta at The Kentucky Derby and winning the lottery in the same year, we can always create one of her characters in the WWE video games as a substitute.

Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro is considered one of the greatest actors of all time because he has been one of the most consistently reliable performers for the past 52 years.

He has done just about every kind of role available in Hollywood, and he has knocked it out of the park every time.

The level of intensity he displayed in films like Taxi Driver, Casino and Heat would have made him an engaging character in WWE, but he isn't just a good actor.

Raging Bull proved he could get himself into good-enough shape to portray a boxer in 1980, so he easily could have kept up in the ring back then.

Think about what it would have been like to see De Niro trade insults with Ric Flair or Dusty Rhodes. He would have been amazing.

Chris Hemsworth

Chris Hemsworth has maintained a large physique during his tenure as Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but big muscles aren't his only attributes.

His role in the recent Ghostbusters reboot was one of the few bright spots, and many have praised his comedic performance in Thor: Ragnarok.

The Australian actor has the looks, personality and imposing presence of a top WWE Superstar, so he would have made quite a lot of money had he pursued a wrestling career.

The scenes he has shared with Tom Hiddleston across the Thor franchise have been some of the best in the MCU, and their relationship has often mimicked some of the long-term feuds we have seen in pro wrestling.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

As soon as you read the title to this article, you probably assumed you would see Arnold Schwarzenegger's name appear somewhere.

The former Governor of California began his career as a bodybuilder, winning Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia titles along the way.

His first starring role came in the form of the strange film Hercules in New York, but people started to pay attention when he portrayed the title roles in Conan the Barbarian and The Terminator.

His massive physique may have opened the door for him, but he proved himself to be a capable actor once he branched out into more dramatic and comedic roles.

Unlike most of the names on this list, The Governator has appeared on WWE television, and he was even inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame in 2015.

Schwarzenegger would have been a dream opponent for the likes of Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant, and WWE even went as far as including him as a playable character in WWE 2K16.

Hollywood history is filled with countless men and women who could have made it in WWE. Which actors do you think would have made great pro wrestlers?