Why didn't Roddy Piper have a bigger career in Hollywood?

[eudypfohl]

They Live was a damn good movie. It wasn't some massive surprise blockbuster but it was well reviewed, enjoyable, made money (and still holds up to this day) and was really a perfect way to introduce Roddy to Hollywood and springboard Piper to bigger and better things. More visible, meaningful roles.

And yet it never did. Piper was only in his mid 30s at that time so it wasn't like he was too old...he certainly wasn't lacking in personality. He was a unique guy and radiated starpower. The type of guy who you figure could've carved out some kind of respectable career

And yet it never happened. Why do you think that is? Just unlucky? Did the right roles post They Live never come to him? Did he turn down some great opportunities and never recover from it?

I would never expect him to become a Rock like star, but I'm surprised he didn't have a bigger career

[Mozenrath]

I imagine it was a matter of not finding the right kind of roles to not be seen as a bit of a gimmick, "the acting wrestler". It's sort of like how there was a big career difference between Bautista in "Man with The Iron Fist" and Blade Runner 2049. One's a bigger movie, yes, but beyond that, it's a role that didn't really lean on the wrestling background kind of stuff, and the kind of thing he would have never been considered for if he didn't climb himself out of that hole.

Hogan honestly never got those roles, either, so Piper isn't alone in that respect. Ironically, Ventura possibly could have on the back of Predator if he'd kept at it, but given the money he was getting from WCW, I don't blame him for focusing on that.

[lucas_lee]

Piper made bad choices as his follow up projects and killed a movie career

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

Some of his other movies where just bad choices. Than that kind of kills a career when you do it more than once.

[msc]

He made some bad films. But really everything in Piper's career comes down to personal demons (both the drugs and genuine godawful mental health) and a lack of confidence in his own abilities. The guy was loved and respected by millions, but not by himself.

["Evil Brood" Jackson Vanik]

I imagine he was difficult to work with. This is the same guy who told Bryan Alvarez at a show that he was going to burn his house down.

[Spider2024]

Hollywood was all out of bubble gum.

[Spider2024]

Serious answer: My guess is that it's because Piper was mainly trying to break in as an "action movie" star, and that was during a time period where you totally had to LOOK LIKE an action movie star to be one. Looking at the big action stars of the time (Arnold, Sylvester Stallone, JCVD, Bruce Willis, even Sigourney Weaver) they looked like they could kick anyone's ass in 10 seconds flat. Piper was never that guy.

[Milkman Norm]

1. It helped immensely that his film debut was made by one of the greatest directors ever.

2. His follow was this:



which was not.

[Zombie Mod is not a ghoul.]

it was a combination of things, poor choice of follow up roles, personal demons, his desire to continue wrestling, hollywood not considering wrestlers as having the ability to be nothing more than a flash in the pan for that one role (look at how the rock was perceived for the first few years as an actor. hell hogan was more given b/c movie roles outside of a few guest appearances in films and he was the biggest name in wrestling at the time.), and possibly vince interfering as wanting an executive producer credit in every movie he was to be in (the rock had this early on acting career wise), and as mentioned not having the build wanted at the time (piper got into shape for they live but not the stalone/schwarzenegger type of shape.).

[jason1980s]

Feb 12, 2022 9:59:36 GMT -5 Spider2024 said:

Serious answer: My guess is that it's because Piper was mainly trying to break in as an "action movie" star, and that was during a time period where you totally had to LOOK LIKE an action movie star to be one. Looking at the big action stars of the time (Arnold, Sylvester Stallone, JCVD, Bruce Willis, even Sigourney Weaver) they looked like they could kick anyone's ass in 10 seconds flat. Piper was never that guy.

I actually liked Piper as an actor but I really didn't like him on WWF very much. His gimmick seemed so over the top and forced and I didn't like how he wouldn't lose clean until Wrestlemania 8.

I never did see "Hell..." but I did see many of his lesser known roles and it seems like he was really good at being a second tier guy (with no offense to him) in TV shows or movies. He was in a Walker Texas Ranger where of course Chuck Norris was the bigger star and there was a direct to DVD movie where he played a community leader where his son had been killed by a gang member and Piper leads the community to take down the killer. I think it kind of goes with his real life, home persona-the loving family man living in a quiet town which was the opposite of his wrestling persona.

I do also think there was a "stigma" about wrestlers as actors up until the Rock started to take off and also no one comes even close to the Rock's movie fame and popularity so even with the Rock being so famous, wrestlers aren't exactly seen in a good light as actors except Cena.

[nickcave]

Until Batista and Cena wrestlers have been pretty typecasted as musclebound action guys which Piper has never been a good fit for. The reason he's so good in They Live is he's playing this every man type of character which is more his speed.

[El Pollo Guerrera]

Feb 12, 2022 11:32:30 GMT -5 nickcave said:

Until Batista and Cena wrestlers have been pretty typecasted as musclebound action guys which Piper has never been a good fit for. The reason he's so good in They Live is he's playing this every man type of character which is more his speed.

He also kind of fits into a 'tired, old, worn out but PO'd enough to fight' type of role that would work in a buddy cop-type movie... like his two movies with Billy Blanks. Those were fun.

[chazraps]

Feb 12, 2022 10:01:13 GMT -5 Milkman Norm said:

1. It helped immensely that his film debut was made by one of the greatest directors ever.

2. His follow was this:



which was not.

'Frogtown' came out before 'They Live' did.

[crashmatsbazz]

Feb 12, 2022 12:27:33 GMT -5 chazraps said:

Feb 12, 2022 10:01:13 GMT -5 Milkman Norm said:

1. It helped immensely that his film debut was made by one of the greatest directors ever.

2. His follow was this:



which was not.

'Frogtown' came out before 'They Live' did.

was going to post this, 


i think it was due to him moving towards TV more than Hollywood, after They Live and Frogtown, hes in like Loveboat, highlander, tag team with Jesse, superboy, loads of TV shows, so maybe he just decided TV was better for him? 

[tafkaga]

He was pretty middle of the road in every category.

He didn't have the screen presence of Arnold or Stallone.

He didn't have the acting chops to get leading roles that required much range.

I think the best Piper might have done is become a respectable supporting actor, one where he didn't have to get outside of his range or carry the whole film on his shoulders. This is what Jesse Ventura did and why his short film career is better remembered than most wrestlers.

[Kevin Hamilton]

He wasn't that good an actor.
I love They Live as well, but John Nada's whole deal is he's nothing but a blank slate as a character, up to and including his last name meaning nothing. Roddy did a good job with that but even there he wasn't exactly stretching any acting muscles.

Frogtown is hilariously bonkers but it's the same sort of deal, Roddy is being Roddy.

He had charisma certainly but not in a real leading man sort of way. He'd probably have been better served in the Jesse Ventura sort of role of secondary character to a real star like Schwarzenegger. Granted, Jesse pretty well already had that.

But put him as the main bad guy's heavy in something like Lethal Weapon or whatever and he could have thrived.