Hulk Hogan’s roles as movie star, media crusader and MAGA hype man had a major impact outside the ring

Hulk Hogan, who died on Thursday at the age of 71, will be remembered as a true icon of professional wrestling. His extraordinary star power has helped turn the wrestling industry into a global phenomenon that rivals traditional sports in reach, income and cultural impact.

As important as his wrestling legacy is, native Terry Gene Bollea has also made an impact in other ways. These are some of the most memorable roles he played outside the ring.

TV and movie star

Hogan’s larger-than-life badass personality seemed to fit perfectly with the hyper-macho look that defined action films of the 1980s and 1990s. His first acting performance was perhaps his most successful, when he played a wrestler known as Thunderlips in 1982. Rocky III. He landed his first leading role seven years later, again playing a character inspired by his wrestling persona No blockages. The film was a commercial failure and was absolutely panned by critics. His next two films, Suburban commando And Mr. Nanny, receive similar receipts. Hogan didn’t have much luck on TV either. His show Thunder in paradisewhich debuted in 1994, was canceled after one season.

Although his attempts at becoming a leading man failed, Hogan had a long list of memorable guest spots and cameos in a wide variety of projects over the decades, including Suddenly Susan, Muppets in space And The Goldbergs.

Reality star

Hogan had much more success on screen when he wasn’t playing a character at all. In 2005, VH1 aired the first episode of Hogan knows bestwhich chronicled his daily life with his wife and two children, Brooke and Nick. The show was a huge hit, attracting the network’s largest audience ever for a premiere episode at the time. The show lasted four seasons before being abruptly canceled due to a series of scandals within the family, including a car accident involving Nick Hogan that seriously injured his friend.

Hogan knows best helped Brooke achieve modest success as an artist and as the star of her own reality show, Brooke knows best.

Media crusader

Hogan was at the center of one of the most important legal media battles in recent history. In 2012, the popular gossip and news site Gawker published portions of a video showing Hogan having sex with a friend’s estranged wife. With the financial backing of right-wing tech billionaire Peter Thiel, Hogan sued, claiming Gawker had violated his privacy and caused him emotional harm. A jury ruled in his favor and awarded him total damages of $140 million.

The case bankrupted Gawker Media, one of the defining media brands of its time. The flagship site closed in 2016. Some of the other properties — including Deadspin, Gizmodo, and Jezebel — remained in business under new ownership, but never came close to reaching the heights they reached when they were under the Gawker umbrella.

MAGA hype man

Hogan’s wrestling persona was emphatically pro-American, but politics was not a major part of his personal brand until the 2024 presidential race. Last year, he became one of President Trump’s most outspoken celebrity supporters. He praised “Trumpamania” during what Trump called an “absolutely electric speech” at the Republican National Convention last July, in which Hogan revived his signature move of ripping his shirt to shreds. He put on a similar show at a Trump rally in New York a few weeks before Election Day.

“In politics, celebrity endorsements rarely go viral. But by thinking BIG — and retro… Trump’s team may have succeeded in doing just that,” Yahoo’s Andrew Romano wrote after Hogan’s speech at the convention.