Two of the biggest names in professional wrestling history to find success in Hollywood has to be Dwayne Johnson and Dave Bautista. Known in the WWE as The Rock and Batista, both men were successful world champions for the company and have since become huge stars in the world of movies.
In an interview with Q with Tom Power, another former WWE Wrestling world champion, Chris Jericho, talked about his career in the world of heavy metal music and said that Vince McMahon is the reason guys like him, The Rock and Batista were able to find success outside of the WWE.
Vince McMahon's influence
Chris Jericho said that one of the things he notices most about the 72-year-old Vince McMahon is his work ethic. Jericho said that the work ethic of Mr. McMahon rubs off on everyone that works for him and that is why guys like him can succeed in the world of music and The Rock and Batista can become Hollywood stars.
Jericho said that people who work with The Rock on a movie will realize that he has an incredible work ethic and is one of the hardest working members of the entire cast and crew. He is tireless and has no problem dealing with all the press for the movie. Chris said that is something that McMahon does and instills in everyone he works with.
The Rock has become one of the most marketable names in Hollywood, his movies almost always making the most money for any given year.
While Batista has not enjoyed the same success in lead roles, he has secured a nice spot in Hollywood with roles in franchises like "Guardians of the Galaxy," "James Bond," and "Riddick."
Chris Jericho as a musician
At the moment, Chris Jericho is not working in the WWE and is focusing on his music career rather than his wrestling career.
He did make a special appearance last month on "SmackDown Live" but said that is not a problem for him. Jericho said he can sing with Axl Rose one night and then wrestle Shawn Michaels in a five-star match the next night.
However, Jericho did admit that things were tough in the start for him. Most people considered his band Fozzy to be a joke at the start - nothing more than a cover band with cheesy original songs.
However, Jericho has since enjoyed a lot of success with his latest single "Judas" and more people in the rock world are taking Fozzy seriously.
Chris Jericho did say that he sought out Rob Zombie for advice early in his music career. Jericho said that Zombie faced the same backlash when he tried to start making movies because people wanted him to just make music. At the end, Jericho said he loves wrestling and music and there is no reason he can't be great at both.