These 35 Talented Athletes Crossed Over to Become Big-Time Actors

When you watch your favorite talented actors onscreen, you might assume that they've been training for the profession their whole lives.

While that's true in many cases, you'd be surprised to discover the careers many celebrities had before they became movie stars. In fact, a surprising number of the talents in today's biggest films actually got their starts as professional athletes.

Don't believe us? Keep clicking through to discover 35 of the incredible athletes who crossed over to become some of our very favorite actors.

1. Terry Crews

Today, Terry Crews is a well-known actor best known for his comedic roles, particularly in series such as Everybody Hates Chris and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but before that, he was a pro football player. He played for Western Michigan University before becoming an NFL defensive end and linebacker in Los Angeles, San Diego and Washington, as well as in the World League of American Football before retiring from the sport.

(Brooklyn Nine-Nine via NBC)

 

2. Shaquille O'Neal

Toward the end of the '90s and the beginning of the new millennium, Shaquille O'Neal was at the height of his fame not only as a core member of the Los Angeles Lakers—who won three consecutive basketball championships from 2000 to 2002—but also as an actor appearing primarily in humor roles. Though he's retired from basketball, he still sets some time aside to act, most often playing an exaggerated version of himself.

(Blended via Warner Bros. Pictures)

 

3. Vinnie Jones

Though Vinnie Jones isn't as well-known here in the states as he is in the U.K., he's still made some notable appearances in films including X-Men: The Last Stand and television series such as Elementary and Arrow. Before he started acting, however, he was a professional footballer—or as we'd probably call him, a soccer player. His soccer career spanned 15 years and saw him playing for Wimbledon, Leeds United, Sheffield United, Chelsea, Queens Park Rangers, Wales and more.

(Arrow via The CW)

 

4. Dennis Rodman

Dennis Rodman was one of the most famous basketball players of the '90s, not just for his skill as a defensive player on the court, but also for his often controversial personal life, as well as his attempt at movie stardom. His biggest features were Double Team and Simon Sez, neither of which were met by much acclaim from fans or critics. Simon Sez even won three Razzie Awards for being so bad.

(Simon Sez via Columbia Pictures)

 

5. Bruce Lee

Bruce Lee was one of the most beloved and respected stars in all of martial arts cinema, and this may be obvious, but his skills weren't earned just for the movies. While he actually started as a child actor (his father was a famous Cantonese opera star), Lee learned Wing Chun martial arts as a kid before being exposed to boxing, and later adapting techniques from a variety of martial arts styles. He was also the founder of his own martial arts philosophy called Jeet Kune Do, which he put to great effect in his captivating films.

(Enter the Dragon via Warner Bros.)

 

6. Johnny Weissmuller

Johnny Weissmuller isn't exactly a household name to many modern audiences, but the Austro-Hungarian swimmer and water polo player was a massive movie star in the 1930s due to his role as Tarzan in the Tarzan the Ape Man films. We as an Olympian with multiple medals in swimming and water polo, and even set numerous world records before he swung from the trees as an ape man.

(Tarzan the Ape Man via MGM)

 

7. Dave Bautista

Though Dave Bautista made his career with the World Wrestling Federation as the fighter Batista for eight years, it's quite possible that this acting has now made him even famous. The former pro wrestler, mixed martial artists and bodybuilder is perhaps best known for playing Drax in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy films, but he also appeared in the Blade Runner sequel, and even played a Bond villain.

(Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

 

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8. Mike Tyson

At the peak of his 20-year professional boxing career, there's no doubt that Mike Tyson was the most famous boxer on earth. Not only was he basically unbeatable in the ring, but his bold persona and big outbursts—including bitting a competitor's ear—made him impossible to ignore. Today, he's retired from boxing, but occasionally appears in film and TV roles, whether that's playing original characters or a fictional version of himself. He also voices his cartoon self in Adult Swim's Mike Tyson Mysteries.

(The Last O.G. via TBS)

 

9. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

You don't become a six-time NBA Most Valuable Player without serious ability, but Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the real deal, with an impressive basketball career that spanned 20 seasons. Somehow, he also found time to act during that time. He made his big-screen debut in 1972 opposite Bruce Lee in Game of Death, and also appeared in Airplane, Fletch and Troop Beverly Hills, to name just a few.

(Game of Death via Golden Harvest)

 

10. Carl Weathers

Carl Weathers is an acting legend at this point, having appeared in classic including Rocky and Predator, as well as more recent hits such as The Mandalorian. But before he was a movie star, he was a professional football player. He played with the Oakland Raiders before signing with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League before he decided to pursue acting. Perhaps his athletic connection is why some of his most enduring films, the Rocky franchise and Happy Gilmore, are also sports flicks.

(The Mandalorian via Disney+)

 

11. Gina Carano

And Carl Weathers isn't the only former pro athlete to grace our screens in The Mandalorian. Before Gina Carano played the butt-kicking Cara Dune, she was a professional mixed martial artist with only a single loss on her record. Other film credits include Fast & Furious 6, Heist and Deadpool, all of which made great use of her strength and tough physique.

(The Mandalorian via Disney+)

 

12. Terry Bradshaw

Football fans know Terry Bradshaw as one of the greatest quarterbacks in all of NFL history. The former pro football player was the first quarterback to win three Super Bowls—and then quickly became the first quarterback to win four, winning four Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers in only six years. He also started some acting before his football career was through, appearing in Hooper and The Cannonball Run, and even having a cameo in Smokey and the Bandit II. He still acts occasionally these days, and was even The Deer on The Masked Singer last year.

(The Cannonball Run via 20th Century Fox)

 

13. Lou Ferrigno

Lou Ferrigno's first acting spot is likely to remain his most well-known and iconic, as it was playing the Hulk in CBS's The Incredible Hulk on TV. Before that, he was a professional bodybuilder who trained with and competed against Arnold Schwarzenegger, and a documentary about their rivalry, Pumping Iron, but Ferrigno's name on the map. He was played briefly in the Canadian Football League before becoming the Hulk, and layer appearing in the medical drama Trauma Center and becoming a recurring character on The King of Queens.

(The Incredible Hulk via CBS)

 

14. André the Giant

Born André René Roussimoff, André the Giant was a French professional wrestler best known for the fact that he stood at an incredible 7'4″, towering over his opponents—as well as his costars when he started his acting career. He went undefeated for years while also pursuing acting. He appeared in Conan the Destroyer and Micki & Maude, but his most notable role was as Fezzik in the classic The Princess Bride.

(The Princess Bride via 20th Century Fox)

 

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15. O.J. Simpson

O.J. Simpson is a controversial figure to say the very least, but putting his criminal record aside, he was a bona fide superstar athlete and actor beginning in the '60s. "The Juice" was a massively successful football running back who played for the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers. Technically, he started acting before he went pro, appearing in a series called Medical Center before being featured in Roots, The Towering Inferno and the Naked Gun trilogy. He was almost briefly considered to be the Terminator before the role went to Arnold Schwarzenegger.

(The Towering Inferno via 20th Century Fox)

 

16. Tony Danza

Though today, Tony Danza is primarily known for being a television actor, he was actually a pro boxer before he ever considered acting. His boxing career was notable for all but one of his fights ending in a knockout—whether he was the on the winning end or the losing one. He was actually discovered by a producer at a boxing gym, landing him a job on Taxi before he was cast in Who's the Boss?, making him a household name.

(Who's the Boss? via ABC)

 

17. Howie Long

Howie Long is additional proof that the National Football League is the spot for recruiting future stars. He played as a defensive end for 13 seasons with the Raiders in Oakland and Los Angeles before retiring from the league to pursue acting in a number of big action films including Broken Arrow, 3000 Miles to Graceland and Firestorm.

(Broken Arrow via 20th Century Fox)

 

18. Rick Fox

During Rick Fox's 13-year NBA career playing for the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, he was known for his good looks as well as his skills as a small forward, drawing frequent comparisons to movie star George Clooney. It's no surprise, then, that he also began to pursue acting just a few years into his basketball career. He appeared in Blue Chips, He Got Game and Oz during that time. Most recently, he's been playing Darius Nash on OWN's Greenleaf.  

(Greenleaf via OWN)

 

19. Jason Statham

Though most fans don't know much about Jason Statham's athletic past, it's not all that surprising that he has one. His films often involve heavy stunt work as well as martial arts performances, and though he is an avid practitioner who also grew up playing soccer with Vinnie Jones, you may be shocked to find out he started off as a professional diver, being part of Britain's National Swimming Squad for 12 years, and even competing in the 1990 Commonwealth Games. Maybe that's why he's so convincing in The Meg.

(The Meg via Warner Bros. Pictures)

 

20. Mickey Rourke

Mickey Rourke has had a fascinating career because, unlike many athletes  who turn to acting, he returned to sports even after his career took off. He began young as an amateur boxer, but after multiple concussions, he temporarily gave up boxing to pursue an acting career. His early roles included 1941, Rumble Fish and Year of the Dragon, but in 1991, he returned to boxing, this time as a pro, and was undefeated in eight fights, though he suffered many injuries during this time. He soon came back to acting. Appropriately, one of his most notable roles was in The Wrestler as an aging pro wrestler who refuses to stop fighting, despite being way past his heyday.

(Iron Man 2 via Paramount Pictures)

 

21. Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan was basketball's biggest star of the '80s and '90s, and is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time. He played in the NBA for 15 incredible seasons and won six championships with the Chicago Bulls, but to '90s kids who weren't huge basketball fans, he'll always be the star of Space Jam, who teamed up with the Looney Tunes to beat a team of evil alien basketball players. Jordan hasn't done a lot of other acting, but the role is iconic enough to earn him a spot on this list.

(Space Jam via Warner Bros. Pictures)

 

22. John Cena

Professional wrestling is as much of an acting gig is it is an athletic one, so it makes sense that the sport gives rise to so many of today's biggest action stars. The WWE wrestler initially adopted the persona of a disrespectful rapper before winning his first WWE Championship and took on a more heroic role. His acting career began in 2006 with The Marine, and since then he's also appeared in Trainwreck, Bumblebee and more, though he hasn't fully given up his wrestling. Next up, he'll be playing the younger brother to Vin Diesel's character in F9.  

(Bumblebee via Paramount Pictures)

 

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23. Ronda Rousey

Though Ronda Rousey is best known for her impressive mixed martial arts career, she actually started off as a judoka. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, she became the first American women to earn an Olympic medal in judo. After that, she pursued MMA, becoming a fast UFC fan favorite and going undefeated for years. After a couple of losses, she unofficially retired, but not before appearing in The Expendables 3 and Furious 7. Since then, she's also appeared in Entourage and Charlie's Angels.

(Furious 7 via Universal Pictures)

 

24. Ed O'Neill

Today, Ed O'Neill is probably most recognizable from playing Jay Pritchett on ABC's Modern Family, but back in the day, he was quite the athlete. He attended Ohio University on a football scholarship before transferring to Youngstown State University, where he was a defensive lineman, and he was even drafted by the Pittsburg Steelers when he graduated, before being cut from the team. Ironically, in his role as Al Bundy in Married With Children, he played a high school football star whose career went nowhere.

(Modern Family via ABC)

 

25. Chuck Norris

There's a reason that Chuck Norris's legendary skill and formidability have spawned countless memes over the year. He's known for playing tough characters because he's the real deal. Before becoming an actor, he earned black belts in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and judo, setting up his own studio and training movie stars in the martial arts before he ever become one himself. His first role was opposite his friend Bruce Lee in Way of the Dragon, which eventually led to many more roles, including his best-known as Walker, Texas Ranger.

(Walker, Texas Ranger via CBS)

 

26. Jason Lee

Jason Lee is a little bit different from the other athletes on this list because he actually started out as a professional skateboarder in the late '80s. He even founded Stereo Skateboards and appeared in the famous skateboarding promo video Blind Skateboards, directed by Spike Jonze. However, he quit pro skating in the mid-'90s to try acting, starring in many films directed by friend Kevin Smith. Other notable appearances include Almost Famous, My Name Is Earl and The Incredibles.

 

27. Matthew Perry

Before Matthew Perry ever graced our screens as Chandler Bing on Friends, he was a bit of a tennis superstar. Even at the tender age of 13, he was a nationally ranked player in Canada. However, after he moved to L.A. at the age of 15 to attend the prestigious Buckley School, he found that he just couldn't compete with the strong American players, and decided to put his focus into acting.

(Friends via NBC)

 

28. Kurt Russell

Actor Kurt Russell is an acting legend at this point, but many fans are unaware of the fact that, at one point, he had a career in baseball. He was actually a child actor, thanks in part to the fact that his father was actor Bing Russell, but for a while, he was also a second baseman in minor league eams including the Bend Rainbows and Walla Walla Islanders. Eventually, an injury forced him to retire from the sport, bringing him back to act in films including Escape From New York, Big Trouble in Little China and The Thing. His dad also played professional baseball, so it seems it runs in the family.

(Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

 

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29. Wyatt Russell

Speaking of athletics running in the Russell family, it turns out that Kurt's son, Wyatt, is also an athlete-turned-actor. Over the years, he's played as a goalie for a few amateur and professional hockey teams, including the Chicago Steel of the U.S. Hockey League and the Groningen Grizzlies in the Netherlands. Like his dad, he also had to stop playing sports full-time due to injuries. His credits include Black Mirror and 22 Jump Street, and we're very much looking forward to his next role in Disney+'s The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

(22 Jump Street via Sony Pictures Releasing)

 

30. Jim Brown

Just because Jim Brown is considered one of the greatest football players of all time doesn't mean that he also couldn't have an incredible career outside of the sport. He was a fullback for the Cleveland Browns for eight years, during which he was selected as the AP NFL Most Valuable Player three times. He retired from the sport in 1965 and went on to become a film star as well, starring in The Dirty Dozen, The Running Man, Any Given Sunday and more.

(Any Given Sunday via Warner Bros.)

 

31. Channing Tatum

There's no denying that actor Channing Tatum has an athletic quality about him, but the skilled actor and dancer's sports of choice might not be completely obvious at first glance. On top of being a fan of soccer, baseball and track, he was actually a college football player, attending Glenville State College in West Virginia on a full football scholarship before dropping out due to grades. He's also highly trained in kung fu.

(Logan Lucky via Bleecker Street)

 

32. Jon Bernthal

Jon Bernthal is best known for tough-guy roles, such as playing Shane Walsh on The Walking Dead and Frank Castle (also known as the Punisher) on Netflix's Daredevil and The Punisher series, but while he was pursuing acting as a career, he also dipped his toe into playing baseball. While studying at the Moscow Art Theater School, he also was a catcher for a professional baseball team in Russia.

(The Walking Dead via AMC)

 

33. Hulk Hogan

Terry Eugene Bollea, better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is one of the most well-known wrestlers of all time.  After signing with the World Wrestling Federation in 1983, he became beloved for his patriotic persona,  and won the WWF Championship five times before leaving for the World Championship Wrestling in 1993. He actually starting acting early into his time as a wrestler, appearing in Rocky III, No Holds Barred, Suburban Commando and more. More recently, Hogan has been focusing more on voice work, providing his unique vocals to shows including Robot Chicken, American Dad! and China, Illinois.

(Suburban Commando via New Line Cinema)

 

34. Arnold Schwarzenegger

Today, Arnold Schwarzenegger is known as one of the largest action film heroes of all time, but in the early '80s, he was just an influential pro bodybuilder, becoming Mr. Olympia in 1970 at the age of 23 before winning the title six more times. He did a few small acting roles in the '70s, but in 1977, the bodybuilding documentary Pumping Iron put him on the map as an athlete. His breakthrough acting role was in the Conan the Barbarian films starting in 1982, and despite criticisms of his strong accent, The Terminator in 1984 really cemented him as a star. He basically hasn't looked back in the 35 years since.

(Terminator 2: Judgment Day via TriStar Pictures)

 

35. Dwayne Johnson

It would be hard to argue that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson isn't one of the biggest action stars in all of Hollywood today, but before he was the face of every high-octane summer blockbuster, he was a pro football player, signing with the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League, and most famously was part of the World Wrestling Federation for eight years. Since then, he's starred in everything from The Mummy Returns to The Game Plan, Hobbs & Shaw and Jumanji, and we don't think he's letting up anytime soon.

(Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw via Universal Pictures)

 

Loved this list? Click HERE to see our favorite images of "time-traveling" celeb lookalikes from the past.