Jamaican legend Usain Bolt will be participating in the upcoming IAAF World Championships at the Olympic Stadium, London which will be the last lap of his amazing career. So, when he was asked about his post-retirement plans he mentioned, "We'll see where life takes me (after retirement). You never know in which direction I might go. I might go into acting and do some action movies. You never know."
Well, acting in action movies wouldn't be a bad career choice given the well-built physique Bolt has. Also, there are a number of sports persons who went on to become popular actors.
We bring to you a list of such sportspersons turned actors:
Arnold Schwarzenegger
The international powerlifting champion from Austria, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was also a four-time Mr. Universe, went on to become one of the greatest action heroes of his generation. His acting career's signature role was in James Cameron's sci-fi thriller film The Terminator. His other notable films include Conan the Barbarian (1982), Predator (1987), Total Recall (1990), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), True Lies (1994).
Johnny Weissmuller
Johnny Weissmuller, who was a five-time swimming gold medallist and one-time water polo bronze medallist, starred in 12 Tarzan films. Though he is the sixth actor to play the role of Tarzan, he was popular for adding the popular ape-man's yell.
Dwayne Johnson
Dwayne Douglas Johnson aka The Rock is an eight-time WWF/WWE Champion, two-time WCW/World Champion, two-time WWF Intercontinental Champion and a five time WWF Tag Team Champion. He is now one of the popular American actors now and also a producer.
One of his signature roles is Luke Hobbs in The Fast and the Furious franchise. Apart from that, he starred in a number of movies like San Andreas, Baywatch, Hercules, and The Mummy Returns. He also hosted and produced a reality competition series, The Hero.
Norman Pritchard
Norman Pritchard is the first Indian-born athlete who participated in the Olympic Games, and also the first to represent an Asian nation and win an Olympic medal. At 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, he won two silver medals in the 200 m hurdles. Later, he migrated to the United States and became an actor under the screen name of Norman Trevor.
Norman Pritchard in acted in movies like Beau Geste (1926), Clara Bow's father in Dancing Mothers (1926) and Tonight at Twelve (1929) alongside popular Hollywood legends like Ronald Colman. Apart from these, Pritchard also appeared in several Broadway shows.
Jason Statham
Jason Statham is known for his roles in the crime films like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998), Snatch (2000), and Revolver (2005). But, before movies, he was in aquatics at the 1990 Commonwealth Games. He represented England at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in New Zealand.
Apart from the crime films, he acted in many other films such as The Transporter trilogy (2002–2008), The Italian Job (2003), Crank (2006), Death Race (2008), and the action series The Expendables (2010–14). Statham has also joined The Fast and the Furious franchise.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown was one of the greatest running backs and lacrosse player in history but he retired from the National Football League (NFL) to become an actor. When Brown was asked about it, he told Esquire in 2008, "To leave at 29 years old, MVP, having won the championship in '64 and played for it in '65. To go into the movies and break the color barrier and be in a sex scene with Raquel Welch. To get to be in The Dirty Dozen with some great actors. To make more money in one year than you damn near made in nine years of football. Everything about it was ingenious."
His other notable films include The Dirty Dozen (1967), The Running Man (1987), Mars Attacks! (1996), Any Given Sunday (1999).
O.J. Simpson
O.J. Simpson popularly known as The Juice is a former National Football League (NFL) running back and the only one to rush for 2,000 yards in just 14 games. He was also the Heisman Trophy winner at USC. Later, he took up acting and was in some popular films like The Towering Inferno (1974), The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988), The Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994).
