Dave Bautista’s film career has taken off in a big way in recent years, so perhaps it should come as little surprise to hear that the Guardians of the Galaxy regular has officially retired from his other line of work as a WWE star.
The announcement came via Bautista’s Instagram account, where he shared a message reflecting on his run as a pro wrestler and thanking his fans for their support:
“To all the @wwe fans across the world that gave me the opportunity to suspend your disbelief, thank you. From the biggest part of my heart thank you for letting me entertain you. Tonight was my story book ending and I wanted to leave you with all I had to give. I’ll miss this theater of violence more than I can express in words but I am officially retiring from Sports Entertainment.
“I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished, I leave in great health, and without a doubt the show will go on. I had a hell of a run. Thank you for the journey.”
The signs were certainly there that Bautista was hoping to commit fully to his acting career. In an interview earlier this year with the Tampa Bay Times, for instance, the star distanced himself from Dwayne Johnson and John Cena when he argued:
“Those guys are wrestlers who became movie stars. I’m … something else. I was a wrestler. Now, I’m an actor.”
Bautista went on to say that he didn’t want to be a movie star in the vein of Johnson and Cena, but instead sought to be a character actor with “respect and credibility and education.”
Meanwhile, Bautista’s schedule for the near future has been filling up quickly as of late. Just a few days ago, for example, the news broke that the Blade Runner 2049 actor had been enlisted for Zack Snyder’s Netflix movie Army of the Dead. Before that, it was reported that Bautista had landed a role in Denis Villeneuve’s upcoming Dune reboot. And on the Marvel end of things, it’s expected that Drax will make a return in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
In short, Dave Bautista fans should find plenty of opportunities in the next few years to see the man in action. As a matter of fact, the actor has already heavily implied that he’ll appear in Avengers: Endgame, which you can catch in theaters from April 26th.
