Randy Orton played a supporting role in the WWE Studios movie That's What I Am, which only made $6400 from 10 U.S. theaters. He was then slated to replace John Cena in The Marine 2, which seemed like a perfect fit on paper because Orton actually served in the United States Marine Corps. Orton injured his collarbone and the role went to another wrestler, but Orton was again considered for the lead role in the next sequel The Marine 3: Homefront. However, WWE Studios probably should have looked into Orton's military records, because he only served a year in the Marines before receiving a bad conduct discharge and served five weeks in military prison. Outcry from veterans about the casting led to Orton being dropped from the film. Instead, Orton later starred in 2013's 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded, which went direct-to-DVD. Six months after release WWE reported that the film grossed slightly over $1.5 million in DVD and Blu-ray sales against a $4 million budget, which means we probably won't see Orton in another movie anytime soon.
Chris McKittrick is a published author of fiction and non-fiction and has spoken about film and comic books at conferences across the United States. In addition to his work at WhatCulture!, he is a regular contributor to CreativeScreenwriting.com, MovieBuzzers.com, and DailyActor.com, a website focused on acting in all media. For more information, visit his website at http://www.chrismckit.com.
