You may not recognize Terry Gene Bollea by his real name, but you may recognize him by
his wrestling name.
“Ladies and gentleman...Hulk Hogan!”
The Hulkster became a fixture of American pop culture thanks to the popularity of the
WWF, which also opened the door to his brief career in Hollywood.
Unfortunately, Hollywood isn't really calling Hogan like it did a few decades ago, thanks
to a lengthy list of controversies and complications standing between Hogan and his glory days.
Here's why Hollywood won't cast Hulk Hogan anymore.
Hogan exposed
Childhoods everywhere were ruined when Gawker broke the story of a sex tape involving Hogan
and Playboy playmate Heather Cole, the wife of Hogan's friend, Bubba "The Love Sponge"
Clem. Cole would later testify that Hogan was just one of the many men her husband pressured
her into sleeping with, although she insisted she had no idea Clem was filming the encounter.
In a now infamous twist, however, the leaked tape would prove to be the undoing of Gawker
itself.
Hogan filed a lawsuit against the news site, which was ordered to pay Hogan $31 million
in damages and subsequently forced to shut down in 2016.
“He was willing to do whatever it took to take down Gawker.”
“I knew we were doing what was right, and even if we would have lost...even if we would
have lost, it would have been good because everybody would have known what Gawker was
all about.”
The situation is almost bizarre enough to warrant a "based on a true story" Hollywood
movie...but even Hogan's own true story probably wouldn't cast him anymore.
“Lemme tell ya something sister brother.
You’re gonna feel the tender embrace of Hulkamania!”
Racist remarks
In case you missed it, Hulk Hogan was officially fired by the WWE in 2015.
Although some said he voluntarily resigned, the WWE insisted it fired Hogan after a series
of racist comments he made were secretly recorded in yet another leaked sex tape with Heather
Cole.
“I mean, I am a racist, to a point, f------ n------.
But then when it comes to nice people and s---, and whatever.”
Hogan made a public apology for his statements, claiming his statements didn't represent his
personal beliefs.
In a bid to distance itself from Hogan, all mentions of him were scrubbed from the official
WWE website and online Hall of Fame.
Kind of a weird choice; it's not like everyone would suddenly forget he was a major wrestling
star for decades.
Not long after, rumors began to circulate that the WWE might be willing to bring the
wrestling legend back into the fold, scandals and all.
Not so 'Hollywood'
Hulk's work in Hollywood, despite literally calling himself "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, isn't
exactly impressive.
His first movie appearance was a cameo in Rocky III as a wrestler named "Thunderlips."
“Thunderlips is here in the flesh, babeh!”
Several years later, Hogan would make his star debut in the cult classic No Holds Barred
as a popular wrestler named Rip, which was not a dramatic stretch in any way.
No other wrestler had made quite as big a splash on the big screen as Hogan…except
for maybe Andre the Giant…and Roddy Piper.
“I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass…
...and I’m all out of bubblegum.”
Hulk still had a few more movies than most, and a TV series called Thunder In Paradise
to his credit.
That well went dry by the late '90s, with Hulk Hogan's last major role coming by way
of The Ultimate Weapon in 1998.
That level of cheesy action movie fare didn't really survive through the early 2000s, leaving
Hulk out in the cold.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!"
A little too real
Hulk Hogan's attempts at nepotism also fell horribly flat.
First, there was the attempt to use his fame to help his daughter Brooke launch a singing
career.
While she did have a few minor hits, Brooke made the mistake of being one too many generic
blonde pop singers during the early 2000s, and having a famous dad named Hulk Hogan still
wasn't enough to stand out.
If that weren't enough, Hogan decided to follow in the footsteps of The Osbournes, and put
his questionable family on reality TV.
Hogan Knows Best began airing in 2005.
Although the show was semi-popular with wrestling fans, the decision to put his family in the
spotlight created unnecessary strain for everyone involved.
In August 2007, Hulk's son, Nick, was involved in a horrific car accident, and his best friend
John Graziano was severely injured.
Graziano was left with permanent brain damage and will reportedly spend the rest of his
life "in a semi-conscious state."
The Graziano family sued the Hogans, and the two families settled out of court, while Nick
spent just eight months in jail.
A messy divorce
In the immediate aftermath of Nick's car crash, Hulk Hogan was left reeling when his wife,
Linda, filed for divorce.
By the time the dust of the bitter divorce settled, Linda managed to leave her marriage
with about 70 percent of Hulk Hogan's wealth.
Linda later blamed the divorce entirely on her ex, claiming she divorced him after he'd
had an affair with one of their daughter's friends.
She even went as far as to claim Hulk Hogan had an intimate relationship with wrestler
Brutus Beefcake, although she later retracted those claims.
By 2008, Hogan Knows Best was cancelled, and Hulk was devastated.
Needless to say, the wreck of his personal life has kept him fairly busy off-screen.
At least he has his Pastamania money to fall back on, right?
“I’ve eaten so many Hulkaroos, and Hulky-oos, I kinda feel sorry for Big Bubba, brother!”
Can Hulk return to Hollywood?
Given the negative press that Hulk Hogan has experienced in recent years, it only makes
sense that if he were welcomed back into the WWE, it would be as a bad guy.
It's certainly easier to have everyone hate a sex-taped closet racist than to realistically
turn such a guy like that into a hero.
But who knows?
A successful return to the WWE could help open a backdoor that would help Hulk Hogan
ease his way back into Hollywood.
It won't be easy, but it's not entirely impossible.
Stallone, the man who helped bring Hogan into Hollywood via that Rocky cameo, has helped
himself and other Hollywood action-movie hasbeens stay kinda relevant thanks to his Expendables
movies.
Maybe a future project could make room for Hogan?
Whatever moves Hulk Hogan makes to re-ignite his Hollywood career, he'll have to be careful.
He should know better than anyone: the cameras are always rolling.
Hopefully he can keep a lid on his racist rants — and what's in his pants.
Thanks for watching!
Click the Looper icon to subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Plus check out all this cool stuff we know you'll love, too!