Batista reveals why Hollywood feels like ‘luxury’ after WWE grind
Batista’s rise to stardom in wrestling did not come without significant sacrifices. The former World Champion discussed the struggles in his early WWE years and compared the demands of professional wrestling with life in Hollywood.
Batista talked about the physical, mental and financial toll of wrestling back in his day during his interaction with Cale Owen of W.O.L.F Gyms. He revisited when he struggled to make ends meet and barely living from paycheck to paycheck until his 2005 World Heavyweight Championship win.
“I can’t speak for how it is now, but when I was there you’re just grinding, you’re pulling your own weight and most of the time it’s not only physically very difficult and mentally very difficult, it’s also expensive.”
“When I was wrestling, they pretty much provided you with airfare, and that was it.”
“Not food, not cars, not hotels, none of that. So, my first few years of wrestling I was broke. Until 2005 when I became World Champion and started to make some money, I was still borrowing money from people. I was living in a tiny apartment when I was World Champion, ‘cause I had just become world champion, hadn’t started making money yet.”
“I used to go to those check cashing places and get like a $300 loan. And then you’d come back, pay it and borrow another 300 and do that week after week. That around 2005 is when I didn’t have to do that anymore and I started to make money. But until then I was grinding.”
Having experienced the stark contrast between life as a wrestler and an actor, Batista shared advice for the next wave of wrestlers making the transition to Hollywood, describing the “luxury” of the differences between the two worlds.
“I always tell everybody coming from wrestling, this is gravy because when I was on wrestling, not only was I grinding and grinding harder and it was in a different spot every night. That’s a luxury about film making. You’re typically in the same place for long periods of time. Whereas wrestling, you’re changing talents every night, every day. You’re moving, moving, hustling. Also nobody’s catering to you. Nobody is setting up stuff for you. You don’t have a trailer. It’s not people there helping you with things and moving you along and making your life easier.”
In 2005, he won the World Heavyweight Championship for the first time and later cemented his legacy as a six-time WWE World Champion. He retired from WWE in 2019 and has since then focused on his Hollywood career.
Rosanne Raphael is a wrestling writer with over three and a half years of experience covering all things related to the industry. From a kindergarten teacher to PR Associate to turning her lifelong passion for the industry into a career, Rosanne is currently writing for F4W Online where she focuses on wrestling news, analysis, and storytelling.
Rosanne previously contributed to Sportskeeda as an Assistant Content Manager.
When not consumed by wrestling, Rosanne is a musician and an aspiring artist.