LA Times Profiles WWE Studios – Details

The Los Angeles Times has an article on WWE Studios’ new strategies here. The article talks about shifting to a strategy where they’re putting the talent in supporting roles under established actors instead of casting them as stars in action films and has interviews with Big Show, Edge and Randy Orton. The article compares WWE Studios to the “classic midcentury studios” in terms of slotting contracted talent into different films like the old studio system. Some of the highlights are below:

Orton on his acting skills: “I can’t say I’m confident in my abilities as an actor. I thought doing this for 10 years would give me an edge, but it hasn’t.”

Big Show on acting: Playing a character outside the ring allowed me to free some things inside me. When you express that much emotional nakedness or vulnerability, it unlocks a lot of change in you.”

Edge on the perception of professional wrestlers: “One of the misconceptions when people meet wrestlers is that they think it’s all big hair and underwear and rah-rah. I don’t think that anyone believes we might read a book every two days, which I try to do. They don’t think that we might possibly be intelligent.”

WWE Studios head Mike Pavone on wrestlers taking on acting roles: “I know that some people might be skeptical. They say, ‘You wouldn’t take Brad Pitt and drop him in the middle of a wrestling ring and expect him to do a good job. But I’m not starting at ground zero here. These are natural performers. I’m taking people who are a six or a seven and just trying to get them up a couple of numbers.”

Big Show on expanding his acting styles: “It’s easy for people to take me as a big, funny guy. It’s easy for people to take me as a big action guy. But can someone take me seriously as a father that works hard at his job and has a kid with cancer and his wife has left him?” He pauses. “I want to be a good actor, not a wrestler-turned-actor. If I’m just a wrestler-turned-actor, I think that will be very sad.”

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