A new stage

Published March 15, 2015
Chuck Norris with Bruce Lee in Way of the Dragon
Chuck Norris with Bruce Lee in Way of the Dragon

Sports and acting are like blood brothers: the celebrations after scoring a goal, taking a wicket or hitting a bowler for a six can fall in the category of theatrics — the more expansive the expression, the more massive their reach. This is how some took their talents from the field to the silver screen; in some cases, the formula was an instant hit.

Cricketers love acting the most

Sir Charles Aubrey Smith is perhaps the first sportsman to have gone the Hollywood way. Knighted by King George VI in 1944 for his services to Great Britain, the former England cricketer had the distinction of captaining his side on his Test debut — his only outing as a Test cricketer.

But Sir Smith also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was cast as an elderly gentleman in most of the movies he starred in, but he had the honour of sharing the screen with legends such as Clark Gable, Laurence Oliver, Elizabeth Taylor, Vivien Leigh and Gary Cooper. He was part of the ensemble cast that made evergreen classics such as The Prisoner of Zenda (1937), Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1941) and And Then There Were None (1945).

From Hollywood, we move to Bollywood, where the then recently-retired Sunil Gavaskar played himself opposite Naseeruddin Shah in Malamaal (1988). But not many know that during his playing days, the Little Master had starred in a Marathi movie, Savli Premachi (1980), which also had the renowned actor Shreeram Lagoo in its cast.

But Gavaskar wasn’t the first Indian cricketer to venture into filmdom; that honour goes to his former teammate Salim Durrani, who made his film debut opposite Parveen Babi in B.R. Ishara’s Charitra (1973). Incidentally it was the father of the six-hitting Salim — Master Aziz — who had a big hand in shaping the careers of many Pakistani cricketers, including Hanif Mohammad. Sadly, he couldn’t give advice to his own son, whose foray into films resulted into a box office disaster and he ended up in no man’s land.

Former Indian captain Kapil Dev also acted in three Indian films but he has always played himself; such is his charisma. The Haryana Hurricane guest starred as the person who discovers the deaf and mute fast bowler in Iqbal and eases the tension in the climax of Mujhse Shadi Karogi besides appearing as himself in Stumped.

Dev’s former colleague, Sandeep Patil, tried to cash in on his World Cup winning popularity by acting in a Bollywood film Kabhi Ajnabi Thay. Despite having Poonam Dhillon as the leading lady, the film flopped. Not even a cameo appearance in a fight sequence by Indian wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani (as the villain) could save the film from disappearing without a trace. The well-liked Kirmani, however, appeared in a Malyalam movie, Mazhavillinattam Vare (2012), and was all smiles when asked about his acting career during his visit to Pakistan a couple of years back.

Other Indian cricketers who have tried acting had done it as a means to stay in the limelight including former Test cricketer Vinod Kambli, who starred opposite Sunil Shetty in Aanarth (2002) after his career was as good as over. Former one-time Indian captain, Ajay Jadeja, too, acted in Khel (2003) after he was banned from the game. Then there is Yograj Singh (who played Milkha Singh’s coach in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag), who established himself as an actor of repute in Punjabi and Hindi cinema after his one-Test career was over and quickie Salil Ankola entered Tinsel Town after his exit from international cricket only to act in movies like Churaliya hai Tumne and Kurukshetra.

One cricketer from Pakistan, however, had a successful career in films, and that too in Bollywood: Mohsin Khan. When he was married to Bollywood actress Reena Roy, Mohsin tried his hand at acting and managed to do a good job of it — he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his debut role in J.P. Dutta’s Batwara and lost only to Nana Patekar’s ‘Anna’ role from Parinda.


Most sport-persons are known better for their on-field feats but some have tried their hand at acting, making a name for themselves in the showbiz world as well


He went on to make a name for himself with Saathi, but after a couple of flops (Madam X being the biggest of them all), he relocated to Pakistan and continued his acting career for another decade. He was integral to the

mini-revival of Lollywood, because it was his hits, Haathi Mere Saathi, Beta and Ghunghat, that gave the confidence to others to come forward and lift the industry.

Acting comes naturally to wrestlers In the ring, they are musclemen who tackle fellow wrestlers in their own way; on screen, they take on bad guys and always save the day!

Lou Ferrigno as the Incredible Hulk
Lou Ferrigno as the Incredible Hulk

From Hulk Hogan to Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, wrestlers and Hollywood have always gone hand in hand. The first one to make a name for himself was French wrestler André ‘The Giant’, whose height was used to maximum advantage in a TV series, Six Million Dollar Man, in which he played Big Foot aka Sasquatch way back in the 1970s. He continued to act in The Greatest American Hero, B.J. and the Bear, The Fall Guy and Zorro besides a few films including Conan the Destroyer.

Hulk Hogan was the first one to go big with Rocky III, where he made his debut alongside Mr T (who became a wrestler after the film!) and later appeared in countless low-budget flicks such as Suburban Commando (1991) and Mr Nanny (1993) besides the super hit Spy Hard (1996). He even appeared in a couple of episodes of The A-Team where he was reunited with Mr T, who later on became his tag team partner in World Wrestling Entertainment.

Mohsin Khan starring in a Hindi movie
Mohsin Khan starring in a Hindi movie

Another wrestler who made it big in the Hogan-era was Jesse Ventura who appeared in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Predator and The Running Man (both 1987) and after small roles in TV shows such as X-Files, went on to become the Governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003.

While John Cena (12 Rounds, Legendary, Psych) and Steve Austin (The Expendables) have tried to do well in films; it is their counterpart Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson who has become the most successful wrestler-turned-actor of all times. With hits like The Mummy Returns (where he had an extended cameo), The Scorpion King, The Rundown, Walking Tall, Race To Witch Mountain, Hercules and roles in Fast And Furious as well as G.I. Joe franchise, ‘The Rock’ is here to stay. What helps him in his career is his ability to act which just wasn’t there in his predecessors.

Another deserving mention here is former professional wrestler and mixed martial artist Dave Bautista, who you may know better as ‘Drax the Destroyer’ from Guardians of the Galaxy. And this year he would be ‘Mr Hinx’ in the 24th Bond movie Spectre.

Pop star sings for the ‘Flying Horse’

Veteran hockey player Samiullah was known for his ability to score goals from impossible angles; but even his biggest fans were surprised when he lip-synched pop singer Alamgir’s song, Khel Hamara Hamain Jaan Se Pyara, while playing a hockey coach in a Pak-China TV long play Paiman-i-Wafa in the 1980s.

The play featuring Asif Raza Mir and Neelma Hasan was about cultural exchange of hockey players between Pakistan and China and was liked by all; especially the fans of the ‘Flying Horse’ who acted in a couple of scenes as himself.

Football kings and superstar actors

World Cup winners Pele (Brazil), Bobby Moore (England) and Ossie Ardilles (Argentina) appeared as prisoners of war in John Huston’s Escape To Victory (1981) alongside Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine and Max Von Sydow and showed the world that even a film with footballers can be a success!

The movie was about a match between the allied prisoners of war taking on the German national team in a match that was anything but friendly. The allied team had Pele in their ranks.

Other footballers to venture into acting include Frenchmen Eric Cantona, who had a role as a French Ambassador in the Academy Award-winning Elizabeth. Cantona also acted as himself in Looking for Eric (2009).

Former midfielder Vinnie Jones made his film debut in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and hasn’t looked back since, appearing in Snatch, Gone in 60 Seconds, The Swordfish, X-Men: The Last Stand, Escape Plan and most recently on TV series Arrow as the villainous gangster ‘Brick’.

Pele in Escape to Victory
Pele in Escape to Victory

American footballers go the film way

Before he became notorious as an accused murderer, OJ Simpson was a beloved footballer (the American version). He played the National Football League for 11 years, and it was during that time that the acting bug bit him.

While he was still playing, Simpson appeared alongside Steve McQueen and Paul Newman in the disaster flick, The Towering Inferno (1974). He also had roles in dramatic flicks including The Klansman (1974), The Cassandra Crossing (1976), and the conspiracy-ridden Capricorn One (1978). He was part of the television mini-series Roots (1977), and before his arrest in 1995, was present in all three movies of The Naked Gun trilogy (1988 - 1994).

Before there was OJ, there was Jim Brown too — ranked as one of the greatest sportsmen produced by America. The footballer was lucky enough to have made his debut through the classic war flick Dirty Dozen (1967), and he followed it with Ice Station Zebra (1968), The Running Man (1987), Any Given Sunday (1999) and more recently Draft Day (2014).

Another footballer to star in Hollywood flicks and stand out was Charles Aaron ‘Bubba’ Smith, who is best known for his comic role of Moses Hightower (he was 6 feet 7 inches tall!) in Police Academy movies. Television’s Sergeant Rick Hunter was former professional footballer Fred Dryer, who successfully imitated Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry on TV in the 1980s, and still acts whenever he gets time.

A body to die for

Professional body builders Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno made it to Hollywood on the basis of their chiselled bodies. But while Lou Ferrigno’s appearances have been restricted to The Incredible Hulk, sitcoms and fantasy adventures, Arnold has evolved into a brand.

The former Mr Universe not only went on to become one of the leading movie stars in the 1980s and the 1990s but also served two terms as the Governor of California from 2003 to 2011, before returning to acting. He ‘will be back’ as the Terminator this year, and one hopes that the days of Commando (1985), The Running Man (1987), Total Recall (1990), Kindergarten Cop (1990) and True Lies (1994) return with his most-loved role.

In a ring of their own

Nobody has been able to surpass Muhammad Ali as the greatest boxer of all times; but when he made his acting debut, he wasn’t very good at it.

In his only acting role in TV movie Freedom Road (1979) as ex-slave Gideon Jackson, Ali knocks out former slaves and white sharecroppers — albeit in the US Senate and not in the boxing ring.

The four-hour TV movie returned decent ratings but Muhammad Ali never returned to this arena again. One of his successors, Mike Tyson, appeared in the Hangover franchise as himself apart from other notable appearances.

Never mess with a basketball player

Everybody loves Bugs Bunny, so when the Looney Tune asked Michael Jordan for help in Space Jam (1996), he couldn’t refuse. In what can be termed as one of the best sports films ever, Michael Jordan outshines the cartoon characters by being himself.

The same can’t be said for his NBA colleagues, Shaquille O’Neal, who starred in Kazaam (1996), or Dennis Rodman, who partnered with Jean Claude Van Damme in Double Team (1997) without success. Both films were box office disasters! Shaq, however, has the edge here since his debut flick Blue Chips (1994) with Nick Nolte did really well.

However, the success Kareem Abdul-Jabbar found in acting hasn’t been replicated by any other NBA player; he had an epic battle with Bruce Lee in Game of Death (1978) and also played a co-pilot in the comedy caper Airplane! (1980), who makes you laugh out loud in the most stressful of situations.

Hulk Hogan in Mr Nanny
Hulk Hogan in Mr Nanny

From Olympics to CHiPs

Before he became known as the reality TV star associated with the Kardashians, Bruce Jenner won a gold medal in the decathlon at the Montreal Olympics in 1976. His good looks made him an instant heart throb back home, and when Erik Estrada had a temporary falling out with the producers of hit TV show CHiPs, Bruce Jenner filled in as the motorbike cop!

Olympics’ loss, Hollywood’s gain

Actress Esther Williams’ biggest regret was never competing in the Olympics; mostly because the 1940 Olympic Games were never held due to World War II.

Esther was a national level swimmer who was part of the medley team that set the record for the 300-yard relay at the Los Angeles Athletic Club in 1939. Before she turned to acting, her resume said that she was a national AAU champion in the 100-meter freestyle, with a record-breaking time of 1 minute 09.0 seconds.

The Olympics’ loss was Hollywood’s gain: Williams went on to become famous as the Million Dollar Mermaid, before settling for a career as a homemaker later in life.

Among modern athletes, there is former British diver Jason Statham, who served the Queen for 12 years and was part of the 1990 Commonwealth Games, but now likes to rid the world of bad guys through his Transporter flicks or The Expendables franchise. He will be seen as the antagonist in the latest instalment of Fast and Furious as the man who avenges his dead brother.

And above all…

Chuck Norris may be known as the actor who can do anything but the Hollywood actor is a man of many talents. Not only did he win the professional middleweight karate champion title in 1968, he held it for six consecutive years.

Norris made his acting debut opposite Bruce Lee in Way of the Dragon (1972) and was encouraged to act by none other than Steve McQueen. In 1999, when Norris was inducted into the Martial Arts History Museum’s Hall of Fame, not many were surprised. The actor had earned his spot there by being a dedicated martial artist who promoted the art with his appearances in films and television.

The next year, the World Karate Union Hall of Fame also presented

him with the Golden Lifetime Achievement Award.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, March 15th, 2015

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