WWE’s relationship with Netflix is opening plenty of doors outside the ring, but Eric Bischoff isn’t convinced one of them will lead directly onto movie sets. In his view, being great at wrestling television and being convincing in a scripted Netflix production are two very different jobs.
Speaking on the 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff was asked about WWE talent becoming increasingly involved with Netflix-related programming. Conrad Thompson pointed to Seth Rollins appearing on NFL broadcasts and projects such as WWE: Unreal before wondering whether WWE’s Netflix relationship could eventually put wrestlers into scripted shows and movies.
Bischoff wasn’t sold on the idea. He made it clear he wasn’t trying to disrespect WWE talent, but believes the acting audiences regularly see in scripted Netflix productions is operating at a much higher level.
“I doubt it. This is going to sound so cold, and I don’t mean it to be, but the kind of acting that we just take for granted that we see in Netflix series, for example, that we take for granted, let me reemphasize that, is at such a higher level than even some of the better sports entertainer, combat theater majors. And I say that with respect.”
Cody Rhodes almost became Bischoff’s example before he stopped himself. Cody already has acting experience, so Bischoff believes he belongs in a different conversation from wrestlers attempting to make that jump without the same background.
“You take someone like… I don’t want to pick on Cody because Cody’s actually had some acting, and he’s in a category all of his own because of that.”
Being able to cut a great promo doesn’t change Bischoff’s opinion either. Wrestling has produced plenty of performers who can grab a microphone and hold an audience, but he doesn’t see that skill automatically carrying over when the crowd disappears and a movie camera takes its place.
“But pick anybody you think has a great promo, and I might agree with just about any one of them, right? That’s an easy thing for us to agree on for the most part. Do these people consistently deliver promos that I look forward to? And if we’re honest with each other, it’s a pretty small pool, right?”
Bischoff wasn’t just taking aim at the current generation. He reached back to Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper and Randy Savage, some of the biggest personalities wrestling has ever produced. He even brought up Nick Bockwinkel, whom he still considers the best promo he has ever heard.
“Even the best of them, or the best of what I consider my era, peak ’90s, so to speak, Flair, Hogan, Piper, Savage… In my earlier years, Nick Bockwinkel. Still to this day, I still think Nick Bockwinkel is the best promo I’ve ever listened to or watched.”
Put those same personalities into a conventional movie alongside trained actors, however, and Bischoff believes the difference becomes noticeable pretty quickly.
“But nonetheless, you take any of those top people and you put them in a movie that requires even a pretty fundamental ability of acting, and they stand out because they don’t have it. It’s different.”
Bischoff isn’t claiming that wrestlers can’t make the transition. He pointed out that some have successfully done it, but believes there is a lengthy adjustment involved because wrestlers have spent years learning an entirely different way of performing.
“It takes a while to adjust. I’m not speaking from experience. I’m speaking from having had conversations with others who have tried it, and some succeeded, many didn’t. It takes a long time.”
A wrestler is trained to listen to thousands of people and adjust what they’re doing based on the response coming back. Take away that crowd and suddenly the performer has to learn an entirely different set of cues.
“It’s a different way of learning how to sell, so to speak. And when you’re listening to something other than the crowd and learning how to react to what you’re listening to, it takes a long time.”
WWE’s Netflix relationship may give its wrestlers more visibility than ever, but Bischoff doesn’t think visibility alone turns someone into an actor. For anyone hoping to follow the crossover path, getting through the Netflix door may actually be the easy part compared to learning what to do once the cameras start rolling.
Which current WWE star do you think could make the transition into serious movie or television acting? Let us know in the comments.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
