Top 10 Wrestlers Turned Sci-Fi Actors*

*Although we use the word “actors” very loosely in some cases… Jayne Nelson is your referee

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is in the cinemas this week, and its stars the actor formerly known as The Rock, who gets all fatherly while punching giant lizards on the nose. Dwayne’s probably the most famous wrestler-turned-actor to dip his toe into our gentle genre, but, as Jayne Nelson discovers, there are plenty more out there…

(Oh, and if you’re wondering why the legend that is Hulk Hogan isn’t in the list anywhere, well… that was the subject of much discussion. He has acted, of course, but not in much sci-fi, and when he is in sci-fi, he tends to be playing himself – as in Gremlins 2 – or a variation on himself – as in Muppets From Space. Then we get into the hairy topic of whether Thunder In Paradise was an SFX show or not, and that gets certain members of the team more heated than in discussions about whether James Bond is sci-fi. So let’s just call Mr Hogan an honorary 11th on the list, okay?)

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10 “Stone Cold” Steve Austin

If you share a name with the Six Million Dollar Man it’s a handy bonus if you’re able to kick ass as well as he can – and Mr Stone Cold never failed to do so in his extraordinary wrestling career. Winner of 19 championships and a showman who always entertained a crowd (usually by playing the bad boy), Austin’s larger-than-life persona has followed him into acting… although it’s probably fair to say it’s not exactly his natural environment, if his performances are anything to go by.

His biggest role to date has been in The Expendables, but we’re highlighting his guest appearance in two episodes of Chuck as Hugo Panzer, a muscle-bound baddie who nearly wipes our titular hero off the face of the planet. When it comes to looming, glaring and punching, Stone Cold Steve Austin is the master. Dialogue and nuance? Not so much. The end result is still jolly good fun, though…