By Cali Lando Brown
Professional wrestling is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Hollywood is not deaf to that kind of popularity.
Not only have on-again/off-again professional wrestlers like Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson and John Cena carved out very successful acting careers in mainstream Hollywood, high-profile actors are also embracing roles as professional wrestlers.
Mickey Rourke wowed audiences and scored an Academy Award nomination for playing the fictitious down-on-his-luck wrestler Randy “The Ram” Robinson in the feature film “The Wrestler.” The character was said to be greatly influenced by the real-life downfall of Jake “the Snake” Roberts.
More recently, Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White starred as two of the real-life Von Erich brothers of the famous wrestling family in the heralded release “The Iron Claw.” Efron, in particular, drew raves for her performance and for his extreme dedication to achieving the physique of a champion wrestler.
Rikki Lee Travolta is another established performer dipping his toes into the sports entertainment arena. He will next play heavyweight wrestling champion Bald Man Maciano in a new film from director Camryn Lewis titled “The Perfect Fit.”
Travolta’s characterization is based on the late wrestling champion Macho Man Randy Savage and wrestler-turned-politician Jesse “The Body” Ventura. He oozes machismo and charisma, as he sports the title belt and waxes poetically about the squared circle and the art of pain.
Winner of the 2023 Best Actor trophy for his performance in “The Sleight” in the Midwest Film Festival’s annual awards program sponsored by Lamborghini, like Efron, Travolta displayed a fierce dedication to getting physically ready for his role in “The Perfect Fit.” The results, seen in behind-the-scenes photos, are quite impressive.
Playing Bald Man Maciano is not Travolta’s first dance with the wrestling industry. He previously served as writer and producer of “Champion of the People” a sitcom about a former professional wrestler (Adonis Truth) who is elected mayor of a small town.
Described as “Spin City meets WWE”, the program featured legendary wrestling icon Bret “The Hitman” Hart as Mayor Adonis Truth, with Corey Feldman attached to play the mayor’s chief of staff Pharoah Creed. Travolta was also attached as a co-star, playing the mayor’s government affairs manager Sky Baxter. The show was put on hold when one of the core cast got ill.
“I’ve been a fan of wrestling since I was a kid,” quips Travolta. “The first live event I saw featured Andre the Giant and the Junkyard Dog taking on King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd. It doesn’t get much better than that.”
In addition to Bret Hart, Travolta’s other favorite wrestler was the late Macho Man Randy Savage who he met in the gym while Travolta was preparing to play a professional football player in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.” It is only fitting that Travolta’s character in “The Perfect Fit” is a bit of an homage to Savage.
“I love wrestling, It’s like a soap opera with an injection of testosterone,” enthuses Travolta. “Getting the opportunity to play in that world, even for a little while, is a dream come true.”
