The death of Hulk Hogan, wrestling legend and pop culture icon, sent shockwaves beyond just the professional wrestling world. In the 80s and 90s, the towering blonde beefcake was one of the most popular people on the planet, instrumental in transforming wrestling from a niche pastime to a billion-dollar global industry. His presence was felt in cinema, too, from Rocky III to many others. And just years before his death, his roller-coaster of a life almost made it to the silver screen itself. But in the end, it was not to be.
The Hulk Hogan biopic that never was
In 2019, filmmaker Todd Phillips of Joker fame announced the biopic of Hulk Hogan. Chris Hemsworth, best known as Marvel Cinematic Universe's Thor, was cast to play the American wrestler. There were some concerns about Hemsworth being 'too small' to play the 6'6", 135 kg behemoth, but Hogan was on board with the casting. The actor said he was set to dye his hair and moustache blond for the part. In a 2020 interview with Total Film, he said, "This movie is going to be a really fun project. As you can imagine, the preparation for the role will be insanely physical. I will have to put on more size than I ever have before, even more than I put on for Thor. There is the accent as well as the physicality and the attitude." An excited Todd Phillips called the film "an origin story of the Hulkster and Hulkamania."
How things unravelled with Netflix
By 2021, the film was still moving forward. And then came a lull. There were no updates, no shooting schedules, and still no blonde Hemsworth. Then, Hulk Hogan himself sounded the death knell, saying the film had been scrapped. Speaking on PDB Podcast in 2024, the wrestling legend said that Netflix messed up. “They kind of missed a beat in the contract," Hogan said, "There was a payment that wasn’t placed at the right time. The script was amazing. Scott Silver, who wrote the script for Joker, Wolf of Wall Street, a bunch of other movies, said, ‘This is the best thing I’ve ever written.’ When I read it, I’m like, oh my god, this is really good."
{{/usCountry}}By 2021, the film was still moving forward. And then came a lull. There were no updates, no shooting schedules, and still no blonde Hemsworth. Then, Hulk Hogan himself sounded the death knell, saying the film had been scrapped. Speaking on PDB Podcast in 2024, the wrestling legend said that Netflix messed up. “They kind of missed a beat in the contract," Hogan said, "There was a payment that wasn’t placed at the right time. The script was amazing. Scott Silver, who wrote the script for Joker, Wolf of Wall Street, a bunch of other movies, said, ‘This is the best thing I’ve ever written.’ When I read it, I’m like, oh my god, this is really good."
{{/usCountry}}Later that year, director Todd Phillips confirmed the same to Variety. "I love what we were trying to do, but that’s not going to come together for me," he said.
About the biopic
Not much had been revealed about what tone the biopic was to take, but Hogan had once mentioned that it was dark in a very Todd Phillips way. The wrestler even said that with that treatment, Hemsworth could have won an Oscar for it. "When I read it I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, if this thing comes out…’ there was talk that Chris Hemsworth had never played a real person before and he could probably win an Oscar, this thing is so powerful," Hogan told PDB.
Hulk Hogan's life and death
Born Terry Gene Bollea, Hulk Hogan began wrestling in 1977, but became a pop culture icon during his days at WWE (then WWF) starting 1985. He headlined Wrestlemania, the company's showpiece event eight times in its first nine years, becoming WWF's biggest face, selling millions of merchandise and transforming the company into a national and then international fixture. In the 90s, he became a staple in WCW, becoming a memorable heel (villain). A 12-time world champion, Hogan also starred in several movies, paving the way for his juniors like Dwayne Johnson and John Cena, who all took their wrestling fame to Hollywood.
Hogan died at his home in Florida on Thursday. He was 71. Police in Clearwater, Florida, said authorities had responded to a medical call for a cardiac arrest at Hogan's residence on Thursday morning. Hogan was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, they said.