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confederacy : Peter Thiel , Hulk Hogan , Gawker , and the Anatomy of Intrigueis happen - but who should be cast as Hulk Hogan himself ? Terry Bollea ( well known by his wrestling moniker Hulk Hogan ) is no stranger to Hollywood , having appear in moving picture likeNo Holds Barred , Mr. Nanny , andRocky IIIin the ' 80s and ' 90s . Now , he ’s get the Hollywood treatment yet again - only this meter , in the soma of his very own biopic . And while the " Bollea vs. Gawker " sex mag tape scandal on which the movie will be ground is mostly cut and dry at this point , the same ca n’t be said for who will be cast as the " Sterling Golden " himself .
In 2006 , Bollea was at the center of a malicious gossip when Gawker Media write portions of a sex tape that involved Bollea and Heather Clem ( she was the wife of radio receiver personality Todd Alan Clem , also known as Bubba the Love Sponge ) . However , or else of settle things in the ring , Bollea took Gawker to court of law . The integral hearing erupted into a legal difference of opinion debate freedom of the press versus personal privateness , but it did n’t hold back there . Bollea ’s beef with Gawker only grew from the initial case . When he wasfired from the WWEafter Gawker published transcripts of the wrestler using racial daub , Bollea litigate the Gawker yet again - this time with the help of billionaire Peter Thiel ( who had been outed as homophile by Gawker without his consent ) .
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Now , the picture on which this scandal is based is picking up steam . Francis Lawrence ( The HungerGames , Red Sparrow ) will direct , and Charles Randolph ( who won the Academy Award for Best adjust Screenplay forThe Big Short ) will pen the screenplay . surmisal is now undefended as to who will asterisk in the movie as Hogan , Gawker editor A.J. Daulerio , Gawker CEO Nick Denton , and Clem .
Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Audiences are more than intimate with the wrestling personality that is Hulk Hogan . Who they may not be as familiar with , however , is the genuine human underneath ( and , no , his part in the VH1 realness seriesHogan know Bestdoesn’t count ) . In a way , this upcoming biopic is giving Bollea a reintroduction . His guard is down , emotion are high , and there will be a kind of vulnerability on display that has been - for over 30 years - mostly nonexistent . Now , the goal is finding an doer who can juggle the physical presence and authority , but also the sensitive refinement .
figure Jeffrey Dean Morgan . BetweenThe Walking Dead , Watchmen , and even less intense roles likeThe Possession , Morgan has a singular control of himself . When his performances get volatile , they ’re undercut with diplomacy ; when he ’s work for extreme , he ’s reserve ; and when he ’s intimidating , he ’s able to maintain a sense of calm . Bringing that to a celebrity icon who is fighting for their reputation could be the complete way to get the humanise makeover this motion picture is trying to pull off .
Dash Mihok
When it comes to casting someone as famous as Hulk Hogan , a possible peril is turning the operation into a stylized caricature . In the past , Kevin Spacey tried his hand at Bobby Darin inBeyond the Sea(not because he was needfully right for the function , but because he front and go like him ) , Leonardo DiCaprio did his near as J. Edgar Hoover inJ. Edgar(despite unforgiving prosthetics ) , and Ashton Kutcher essentially cosplayed as Steve Jobs inJobs . So , with that being the casing , sometimes not going for the " it " actor to convey someone to lifespan on the big screen , and instead go with someone unexpected but able is a safer bet .
Dash Mihok , who process with Lawrence Office of Naval Intelligence Am Legend , has been in the commercial enterprise for decades , but has never been given a jibe at headlining a major moving-picture show . Now , having grown out of his younger sidekick function in motion-picture show likeRomeo + Juliet , and proving his gritty , matured ability inRay Donovan , especially , playing Hulk Hogan could potentially become Mihok ’s crown achievement , even though he ’s importantly vernal than Bollea .
Woody Harrelson
Even though Woody Harrelson ’s body case does n’t exactly mirror that of Terry " Hulk Hogan " Bollea , that should n’t number him out of the running altogether . peculiarly taking into account his facial likeness , Harrelson ’s angle on this sort of performance would certainly add to the prestigiousness approach that this picture show is apparently locomote for . A courtroom drama with an Academy Award - win writer at the helm - someone with Harrelson ’s lordliness , range , and establish track platter with playing real - life people ( see : The People vs. Larry Flynt , LBJ ) ought to be a given when considering someone to tackle Hogan ( not literally , as he distinctly would n’t stand a opportunity ) .
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Having go with Lawrence on theHunger Gamesseries , there is already a relationship between the actor and director ; and give that the role requires a lot of attention to point so as to forbid the functioning from feeling hammy or unfocussed , comfortability between the director and actor could do wonders in crafting an ideal interpretation .
Tom Hardy
While age prosthetics are n’t always the most ideal approach with player , they ’re not always sodding misfires - especially when they ’re subtly adding realness to a execution ( see : Daniel Day - Lewis inLincoln ) . What ’s more is that they allow actors who ’d otherwise be incompetent of feeling believable in a rolebelievable . And supply to that a specific player ’s power to deliver irresistibly commanding performance with extensive compass definitely does n’t hurt .
This convey us to Tom Hardy . Not only has he literally proven his ability in the hoop like Hogan in movies likeBronsonandWarrior , his range is jarring . Can he handle the enthusiastic bearing that most people recognize in someone like Hulk Hogan ? Yes . But can he also hone the quieter , struggling conduct that Bollea was experiencing outside of his popular graphic symbol during the trial ? Without a doubt .
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take on this form of function would certainly require a major physical transmutation for Hardy , and history has prove that he ’s more than capable of outgo expectation .
Page 2 of 2:Our Top Hulk Hogan Pick & Casting The Other Key Players In The Gawker Story
The Best Hulk Hogan Pick: J.K. Simmons
in conclusion , there ’s Academy Award winner J.K. Simmons . And even though first stamp might not make him experience especially right for the purpose of Hulk Hogan , his track record demonstrate otherwise .
As play off to the other actor on this list who convey certain attributes or factor that complement Hulk Hogan , Simmons checks all the box seat . Jarring emotional range ? gibe . Age ? Check . Physique ? While he may not be on the same level as Hulk Hogan , he certainly went above and beyond for his performance asCommissioner Jim GordoninJustice League- so , check .
Simmons , who has played everyone from a small town dad inJunoto J. Jonah Jameson in Sam Raimi’sSpider - Mantrilogy , may not seem like the most obvious option for a professional grappler , but he has the electric potential to seriously subvert outlook . In his award - winning performance inWhiplash , Simmons managed to be the most intimidating type in the motion-picture show , while also conveying a strangely displaced sort of pity . And go out as this fresh biopic will doubtless show a side of Hulk Hogan that audiences may not be entirely familiar with , Simmons is the kind of actor who could easy do that sort of portrayal Department of Justice .
Related:J.K. Simmons Open To Playing J. Jonah Jameson Again
Christian Bale - Peter Thiel
Intermixed with all the legal dramatic event beleaguer Bollea and Gawker was billionaire Peter Thiel . Having been outed by Gawker five years prior to the going of the sexual urge tape measure , Thiel was in a singular position to tip the scales of the case , and it was ultimately with the help of his personal financing that help give Boellea the upper helping hand . He co - founded PayPal , is a Facebook board member , and created a nonprofit philanthropic organization called the Thiel Foundation , but it was his personal life - and eventual dispute with Gawker - for which he ’ll in all likelihood be remembered most .
So , when it comes to casting someone with this level of order of magnitude and complexity , it might help finding an worker who ’s no stranger to playing someone whose moneyed lifestyle shrouds a deeply - seat secret that could potentially transfer everyone ’s percept of him where it to ever become public . As it so happens , Academy Award success Christian Bale has done just that . He ’s deal with these themes in Christopher Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogy , American Hustle , and evenAmerican Psycho . And in dominate this unique balance , as well as like an expert curating his emotions amid trauma , scandal , or something else otherwise painful , Bale has proven his skills , making him an ideal pick for this sort of role . It also does n’t hurt that he starred inThe Big Short , which Randolph co - wrote .
Sam Rockwell- A.J. Daulerio/Andrew Scott - Nick Denton
As for the other character reference in the pic , Gawker editor A.J. Daulerio played a important role in the effect lead up to and during the lawsuit . Having been at once involved with the expiration of footage from Bollea ’s sex tape , he terminate up standing trial during the proceedings in Gawker ’s defense . And refreshing off of his Oscar win forThree Billboards Outside Ebbing , Missouri , Sam Rockwell has proven to be no alien to playing characters who are staunch in their feeling , even when those belief are outweighed by the majority .
Shoulder - to - shoulder with Daulerio was Gawker CEO Nick Denton . Having gone personally belly-up due to Bollea ’s lawsuit against his company , Denton ’s charismatic , but morally undetermined disposition seems like the kind of juicy performance perfect for someone like Andrew Scott . While his performance in the seriesSherlockas Moriarty is unquestionably grounded in sheer indulgence , the actor has a unparalleled ability to exude charm and unwavering rigidity simultaneously , not unlike Denton during and after the trial .
Marisa Tomei - Heather Clem
The last player on the board is Heather Clem ( now Heather Cole ) . Though the trial famously revolve around Bollea and Gawker , Clem was just as direct affected by the scandal . During the proceedings , Clem had to stand trial and recount deeply personal interaction between herself and Bollea , noticeably put out by the fact . Regardless of the fact that her husband allegedly encourage her human relationship with Bollea , she had to stand on the pursuit as sensitive material pertaining to her personal life were not only made usable to the world , but became the focal point of a widespread scandal .
Academy Award success Maria Tomei is very much familiar with playing character who are labor to the brink of worked up fatigue ( see : The matman , In the Bedroom ) , so this could be yet another role in which she convey some serious emotional depth . Also , having star inThe Big Short , she ’s already familiar with screenwriter Charles Randolph .