The MMA world and Hollywood have crossed paths many times. Fighters like Gina Carano and Ronda Rousey have shown up in action movies. Legends like Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz, and Georges St-Pierre also gave acting a shot, and more recently, Conor McGregor made waves with “Road House.” Now, it looks like UFC’s “Wonderboy,” Stephen Thompson, might be surprisingly catching Hollywood’s eye.
Gerard Butler Sees Acting Potential in Stephen Thompson
As the live-action remake of “How to Train Your Dragon” releases, fans are excited to see Gerard Butler back as Stoick the Vast, the strong and fearless Viking leader of Berk.
During a recent promotional interview, Butler sat in a conversation with welterweight fighter Thompson, where he drew interesting parallels between facing dragons and stepping into the octagon.
He addressed the similar strategic mindsets of his character and fighters and told Thompson, “I guess it’s like you guys when you step in the octagon, ‘Who am I fighting?’ because these dragons all have different capabilities.”
Thompson’s response gave insights about the mental focus and pressure that come with what he does. “Facing an opponent in the octagon is probably the scariest thing possible, but once you’re in the cage…” Thompson began just as Butler jumped in excitedly, saying, “Let’s go… let’s go!” The fighter laughed at Bulter’s reaction, saying, “I love it.”
That’s when Butler spotted something in Thompson. “You know you’d make a great Viking. I have to get you on Berk,” he said.
Butler’s words seem more than just a casual compliment. He himself has played tough roles in films like “300” and “Olympus Has Fallen” and understands what it takes to do action on screen. Maybe he noticed something in the fighter that made him believe he could really make it as an actor.
However, Thompson, who is well known for being one of the nicest and most respectful fighters in the entire UFC, humbly deflected, saying, “I’d be a little too nice. It’s a reputation that doesn’t fit with the stereotype of a fighter.”
Thompson is a mix of a fierce striker in the octagon and a nice, fun-loving guy outside. This makes him a multifaceted character that modern audiences appreciate.
Thompson Has Already Stepped Into the Entertainment Industry
While Butler saw a Viking warrior in the UFC star, Thompson has already started using his martial arts skills on screen in a different way. He was seen as Sensei Morozov in an uncredited role for “Cobra Kai” Season 5.
Although Thompson is known as one of the nicest fighters, as mentioned earlier, his role was the complete opposite, as he was the evil karate instructor. Besides this, his former opponent, Tyron Woodley, was also there as Sensei Odell.
Tyron Woodley e Stephen Thompson em Cobra Kai!
(na esquerda) pic.twitter.com/oR1bz2mpdU
— Disgust Maximizer (@kalashnikovism) September 10, 2022
During an interview with the New York Post, he revealed how he got the role. “I also had a friend of mine that I’d met years in the past, and he’s actually one of the stunt choreographers to ‘Cobra Kai,’ so he invited me out: me, Tyron Woodley, had some other guys.”
Thompson was supposed to play one of the main evil senseis in the show, but due to his fight schedule, he couldn’t manage to pull that off. “I was supposed to be one of the main bad guys in it, one of the main bad senseis. But they decided to film the main fight scene during the week I was getting ready for Belal [Muhammad]. I was fighting Belal, so I wasn’t able to do that in a time crunch. They said, ‘Look, we’ll keep you in a cameo. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get you back out here for the sixth season,'” Thompson said.
However, the UFC star wasn’t there in Season 6. He will be seen facing Gabriel Bonfim at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Teixeira.