Casting The Roddy Piper Film

1. Roddy Piper - Sam Rockwell

Sam Rockwell Piper 2
WWE/WhatCulture

Someone has to play 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper, obviously, but who? Hot Rod was one of a kind, a once in a generation personality who transcended the industry that made him a star, a mainstream name whose charisma and energy dragged professional wrestling from the underground to the mainstream. Those aren't boots that anyone should feel confident about filling.

Piper wasn't your conventional pro wrestler. He didn't look like a tough guy, he didn't look like an athlete, he didn't look like a bodybuilder, but he managed to rise above those preconceptions to become one of the toughest men in the history of the industry, no small feat. An unconventional pro wrestler demands an unconventional actor in control.

Sam Rockwell gets my nod, as much for his manic energy as his ability to veer between a despicable bad guy and an endearing hero. Roddy Piper ticked both of those boxes in his long career, to say the least. There are no shortage of talented actors in Hollywood who could play the role, but the maniacal eyes of the former Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner win out for me.

Contributor
Contributor

Born in the middle of Wales in the middle of the 1980's, John can't quite remember when he started watching wrestling but he has a terrible feeling that Dino Bravo was involved. Now living in Prague, John spends most of his time trying to work out how Tomohiro Ishii still stands upright. His favourite wrestler of all time is Dean Malenko, but really it is Repo Man. He is the author of 'An Illustrated History of Slavic Misery', the best book about the Slavic people that you haven't yet read. You can get that and others from www.poshlostbooks.com.