How Hulk Hogan tried to take on Hollywood… and lost
The world of professional wrestling is still reeling from the news that Terry Bollea, better known as Hulk Hogan, has died at the age of 71.
As the all-conquering ‘Real American’ hero of the WWE (then known as the ‘World Wrestling Federation’) throughout the 1980s, Hogan led the company through its first proper boom period.
He had legendary matches against André the Giant, ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Randy Orton, and more. Outside the ring, he had some pretty horrific personal opinions, but inside the squared circle, he was possibly the most important wrestler to have ever lived.
As wrestling fans continue to come to terms with his death, now is the time to look back at every aspect of ‘The Hulkster’s’ career. He fronted the very successful reality TV show Hogan Knows Best, hosted his own radio show, and even released an album of original music. However, when it comes to extracurricular activities, nothing is more interesting than Hogan’s insane acting career.
Hogan’s first movie role was arguably his most famous. He played Thunderlips, a champion wrestler not too far removed from his real-life persona, in Rocky III. He and Sylvester Stallone’s title character met in a charity ‘Boxer vs Wrestler’ match, an indication of how the ‘Italian Stallion’ had taken his eye off the ball since becoming world champ. The film came out in 1982, just as Hogan’s profile was beginning to soar. He only got more famous off the back of this major cameo, paving the way for the incredible success he would find inside the ring throughout the 1980s.
As Hogan’s star continued to rise, he decided that maybe this whole ‘wrestling’ malarky was beneath him. As his WWE career slowly wound down, the grappler took the plunge and attempted to make a full-time go of being an actor. Wrestlers had appeared in movies before – Terry Funk in Roadhouse, Jessie Ventura in Predator, etc – but Hulk was the first one to be given the star treatment. He fronted a number of projects designed to elevate him to the next level. Unfortunately, they were all crap.
The first proper attempt to promote the former WWE Champion as a leading man was 1991’s Suburban Commando. Hogan plays an alien bounty hunter stranded on Earth. He finds shelter in the home of a middle-class family, whose members include Christopher Lloyd and Shelley Duvall. Unfortunately, the critics did not hail Hogan as the next big thing, setting the template for a number of other flops throughout the 1990s.
1993 saw the release of Mr. Nanny, a family ‘comedy’ in which a cash-strapped Hulkster looks after two bratty kids, and Thunder in Paradise, a painfully obvious Knight Rider rip-off that saw Hogan piloting a high-tech boat. In 1996, he tried to crack the holiday market with Santa With Muscles, but ended up with the cinematic equivalent of coal in stockings. By this point, he was back in the wrestling game, having all but conceded defeat in the realm of Hollywood.
Unfortunately, Hogan’s attempts to fully cross over into acting never took off. It’s not all doom and gloom, however. As the charismatic superstar with tons of mainstream potential, Hogan set the mould for every other wrestler-turned-actor that was to come. Dwayne Johnson, John Cena, and Dave Bautista, none of these guys would have made it had he not taken those first, ill-advised steps.
His movies might have all been dumpster fires, but Hogan still found a way to make an impact… brother!
