With Lexi Alexander
recently announced as the new director for the late WWE wrestler Chris Benoit’s
biopic Crossface; we list 10 of our favorite picks to play the late
wrestler.
While Live Schreiber was once
rumored to be assuming the role of the charismatic wrestler referred to as “the
rabid wolverine,” he is now almost fifty and Benoit died at the age of 40. It
may be fairly unreasonable to expect him to be able to portray an extremely
physically fit wrestler and portions of his life that occurred from the age of
thirty five through his death at forty. So we have selected ten actors that
fall within that general age range who could pull off the wrestling physicality,
the dramatic acting range necessary for the role, and who can also be able to resemble his facial
and physical build. What picks did we make? Read and find out. Are there any
that you think that we missed?
Michael Fassbender
Why not? He’s played
Magneto in X-Men, a muscle bound Stelios in
300, and will be in the much anticipated Assassin’s Creed. He’s a chameleon with excellent range, taking on big
action roles and delivering the goods with his dramatic acting abilities. He could
pull off looking similar to Benoit facially and is just within turning forty. The
only issue would be packing on a significant amount of muscle.
Tom Hardy
He’s a big name draw who
has a knack for being able to physically alter his appearance for a role, bulking
up for Bronson, Warrior, and The Dark Knight Rises. He can handle action and
fight sequences while also being able to deliver nuanced and dramatic
performances. He has the right range of physicality and dramatic range to pull
of this type of role. He’s nearing forty and would be able to pull off a
somewhat similar muscular build and facial look as Benoit.
Frank Grillo
Watch The Purge: Anarchy and The Purge: Election Year and tell me that he wouldn’t
be the perfect fit for this movie. His has shown the ability to pull off
physical fight scenes and great intensity in those motion pictures and as the
villain Crossbones in two Captain America films. He also played an MMA fight
trainer in Warrior. Grillo kind of misses out
on my age criteria, but he doesn’t even look like he’s close to fifty and I
believe he could handle himself in such a role.
Jake Gyllenhaal
Check out Southpaw and the
amazing physical transformation that he undertook along with the emotional depth that his
character went through. The physicality and rage that he portrayed are exactly
the same type of attributes that are needed for this role. They are almost similar
characters, just with slightly different stories being told. He’s thirty five
right now and could be made up to look like Benoit.
Chris Pine
He’s a huge star that just
recently turned thirty six and resembles Benoit enough facially to look similar
to him. He has done some level of action with the Star Trek series, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, and This Means War. The questions with Pine
is if he has the necessary depth to aptly portray the character and also if he
could sufficiently bulk up to look similar physically.
Stephen Amell
He may be the perfect
candidate for this role. He’s not a huge star, but has been playing a comic
superhero in the intense CW television series Green Arrow. He has shown some
excellent physical abilities on the show, great depth with the character, and
has also been inside of a WWE ring wrestling Stardust. The main issue with
Amell is that when he wrestled in the WWE, he actually looked sufficiently smaller
than the rest of the professional wrestlers. It goes to show how film and
television can make someone appear bigger on camera than they actually are.
Kellen Lutz
He’s a little younger at
the age of thirty one, but he has a great physical appearance and looks
somewhat similar in the face to Benoit. He was in The Expendables 3 and The Legend of Hercules, so we know he could
handle himself physically. The question with him is whether he has the
sufficient acting chops to pull of this type of role, having been nominated for
a Razzie for his performance in The Legend of Hercules.
Matt Bomer
He may be a bit of a
stretch since he is mainly a television actor known for his role on Suits, but he is in the right age range at thirty eight
and looks somewhat similar to Benoit in the face. He did win a Golden Globe for
his supporting role in the miniseries The Normal Heart, so we know that he could pull of the dramatic end
of this role. He also bulked up for his appearances in Magic Mike and Magic Mike XXL, so he would most likely be
able to pack on some more muscle to achieve the right physical look.
Ryan Gosling
He is an absolutely amazing
actor, who has a diverse list of roles and characters that he has portrayed
that have shown both his range and his ability to play some very dark
personas. The darkness and evil sides that he has revealed make him an
excellent fit for this type of role. He’s currently thirty five, is pretty
muscular already, and could most likely be made up to look similar to Benoit.
Jensen Ackles
He’s thirty eight and has
the right build and look to be able to pull of Benoit’s appearance. He would
obviously have to significantly bulk up, which is doable. If they are going for
a lower budget then he may be the perfect fit, as he has mostly starred in the
CW television show Supernatural. Although I can’t say that I’ve really watched
the show before, he has been praised for his dramatic range in the series and
the complexity that he brings to the character.
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