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The Top 5 WWE Smackdown Stars That Should Be Action Stars

March 7, 2023 | Posted by Bryan Kristopowitz
WWE Smackdown Drew McIntyre 11-25-22 Image Credit: WWE

The Top 5 WWE Smackdown Stars That Should Be Action Stars

Last time I did what WWE Raw Superstars I thought should become action stars, and so this time I’m looking at the WWE Smackdown roster. Again, I’ve avoided wrestlers who have already been in a significant action movie role already, so Roman Reigns and Ronda Rousey are not a part of the list. If you missed the Raw list or want to see it again for some reason check it out here.

And so, without any further what have you,

Image Credit: WWE

The Top 5 WWE Smackdown Stars That Should Be Action Stars

Honorable Mentions

Rey Mysterio, Jr.: I’m surprised that Robert Rodriguez didn’t try to make Rey Mysterio, Jr. some sort of action star when Rodriguez’s El Rey Network was still an ongoing concern (and by that I mean an actual TV channel and not the streaming thing it is now) and Mysterio was a part of Lucha Underground. It also would have been a hoot to see Mysterio in the last Machete movie. Who wouldn’t want to see Mysterio battling terrorists or bad guys or, heck, why not have him star in modern Santo style movies?

Karrion Kross: I think it would be interesting to see Karrion Kross as both a villain and as a hero in an action movie. He would have to be bald as a villain because that seems to be him at his most intense, and with hair it’s easy to see him as the sort of anti-hero protagonist of something (think Kurt Russell as Snake Plissken and I’d bet Kross could pull off that kind of part). I’m not sure if I would have Scarlett as his co-star (maybe in the movie where he would be the villain?).

Image Credit: WWE

5-Charlotte Flair: Every time Charlotte Flair comes out to the ring you can tell that you’re in the presence of a true blue superstar. She never comes off as anything but a star. And it doesn’t matter if she’s a good guy or a bad guy. She kicks ass no matter what. So why couldn’t she star in something like The Order in the Charlize Theron role? Or why couldn’t she be the lead in a female lead remake/reboot of Road House (remember when Ronda Rousey was supposed to do that after the general success of The Expendables 3)? Charlotte would rock in a part like that. I’d suspect that some people would complain that she’s too tall to be a real deal action star, but then again why couldn’t she be the female Thomas Ian Griffith? She has all of the necessary tools to make this happen. All Hollywood needs to do is make it happen.

Image Credit: WWE

4- Drew McIntyre: I never thought that I would ever see Stu Bennett (Wade Barrett) as an action star. His turn as the bad guy in Eliminators opposite Scott Adkins was a real eye opener. The guy could go and come off as a legit action star (and his flick I Am Vengeance rocked hard when it came out). I can totally see Drew McIntyre going the same route and sort of doing the same thing. And Drew wouldn’t have to go up against Scott Adkins to get his action hero bonafides; he could do battle against a Michael Jai White, a Gary Daniels, or even a Marko Zaror very easily. And then Drew could get a movie where he’s the hero and he has to fight Vinnie Jones (ha! Barrett did that in the I Am Vengeance sequel I Am Vengeance: Retaliation) or Johnny Messner or Richard Dreyfuss or someone like that. And, of course, Drew would have to dispatch someone with a claymore kick. I bet Drew would also do a good job at being a quip machine.

Image Credit: WWE

3- Kofi Kingston: Kofi Kingston is a terrific athlete but, at the same time, he looks “small” compared to some of his fellow wrestlers. I mean, he isn’t small at all, but he doesn’t look jacked so there’s a chance that someone might not take him as seriously as they should. And that’s where a guy like Kingston could excel in the action movie world. You don’t expect him to kick a bad guy’s ass and then he does it. And then, as the movie progresses you see him go after more and more bad guys and winning. Kofi also has a natural “fun” type charisma where you can totally see him in an action comedy of some sort. He was in that short film with his New Day buddies and the Undertaker. That seemed to do pretty well.

Image Credit: WWE

2- Shayna Baszler: Baszler has had a real up and down main roster career. She came in a monster, destroying everyone in the Elimination Chamber and biting the back of Becky Lynch’s neck and drawing blood. Baszler then lost at WrestleMania and hasn’t really recovered from that. I mean, yeah, she’s been a tag team champion and broken some arms and whatnot (and, as of this writing, she’s in some sort of alliance with Ronda Rousey), but she’s never been allowed to be a big monster bad guy again. If she ever became an action star, it would be a good idea to have her start out in a fighting movie or some sort (Baszler does have an MMA background) and then have her transition to other types of action movies (she could pull off being a black ops assassin). And I’d be willing to bet that she could pull off being a villain in one movie and the hero in the next and it wouldn’t be a big deal. Dolph Lundgren has done that for almost his whole movie career. There’s no reason Shayna Baszler couldn’t do the same.

Image Credit: WWE

1- Ricochet: Ricochet is one of the most athletic wrestlers in the WWE. The guy can do pretty much anything; fly off the top rope, a standing moonsault, super kicks, mat wrestling stuff. Ricochet is the total package. Ricochet could easily star in an action flick that’s chock full of high impact practical stunts and he would always look good doing them. He also has an innate charm that comes through when he’s allowed to talk (granted, he isn’t a super promo but he can talk when he has to), so it’s easy seeing him as the lead in an action movie of some sort. And, just like with Rey Mysterio back when he was on Lucha Underground, Ricochet should have been in an action movie/TV movie directed by Robert Rodriguez when the El Rey Network was still a thing (he was Prince Puma back then). I still say that WWE should do another The Marine and make Ricochet the next one. It would rock.

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