10 WWE Studios movies that are actually worth your time
When people think “WWE,” wrestling and the larger-than-life stars that occupy the company’s so-called “universe” understandably come to mind. If the mind drifts to movies, it’s likely to megastars like Dwayne Johnson or John Cena, who have made the jump to multiplexes around the world.
If you’re an outside observer, the existence of a WWE movie studio may come as a surprise. But what is professional wrestling if not its own form of blockbuster entertainment? With timeless battles of good versus evil and characters ranging from undead monsters like The Undertaker to antiheroes like Stone Cold Steve Austin, it’s positively primal stuff. The wrestling world is tailor-made to exist somewhere within the cinematic stratosphere, as shown by Cena and The Rock’s successful splashes across mediums.
WWE realized this, too. At first, the sports entertainment company happily lent its name as producer to films like the Hulk Hogan-led No Holds Barred,and then laterto The Rock’s first major vehicles, The Scorpion King and The Rundown. In 2005, the WWE cut out the middleman and formed WWE Studios. Like most of WWE’s attempts to venture into the mainstream, public response was largely derisive, and the box office receipts for the studio’s first three outings reflected that. While The Marine (starring John Cena) and See No Evil (starring Kane) weren’t total failures, recouping some of their budgets, the Stone Cold-fronted The Condemned was an unambiguous bomb.
Quickly refocusing their aims, WWE Studios attacked the direct-to-video market. This made plenty of sense, as their compilation videos and documentaries had sold well over the years. It stands to reason the same person buying a “Best of Randy Orton” DVD might also grab an action
Read more on polygon.com
