The acting career of Hulk Hogan was a huge deal for the wrestling industry when he started getting roles in Hollywood. Hogan was the first wrestler to represent Vince McMahon’s vision of mixing wrestling with pop culture during WWE’s growth into the mainstream. This benefited Hogan with various studios looking to him to become part of their movies.
Hogan’s star power during WWE’s rise led to him getting the chance before others to try his acting career. The goal of becoming a star actor never saw Hogan achieving the same success that names like John Cena, Batista and The Rock are witnessing today. Hogan’s movies had the following scores on Rotten Tomatoes based on the overall percentage of positive reviews. Some of his films, like the infamous Santa With Muscles, didn't have a RT score, so they weren't included for the purpose of this list.
9 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain: 0%
The 3 Ninjas franchise found enough success as a campy set of movies featuring a young group of brothers learning karate from their grandfather. A fourth movie in the franchise was clearly too much when casting Hulk Hogan in a lead role.
3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain was released in 1998 during Hogan’s WCW run and was viewed as a failure in every way. Rotten Tomatoes only has a short list of reviews for the movie, but it still ranks as low as possible with 0% positive reactions.
8 Mr. Nanny: 6%
Another lead role for Hulk Hogan came when tasked with leading the Mr. Nanny film. Hogan played a former wrestler taking a new job of looking after a couple of kids. The role was one of the first big ones for Hogan as the sole lead star, but it was a flop.
Mr. Nanny received an abysmal 6% rating on Rotten Tomatoes as a movie almost every critic would recommend skipping. Hogan getting a role in a movie like this was noteworthy in 1993, but it just hurt his reputation based on the terrible product.
7 No Holds Barred: 10%
Vince McMahon decided to take part in the Hollywood side of things by having WWE play a huge role in the production of No Holds Barred. Both Hulk Hogan and McMahon were executive producers for the movie set in a wrestling world.
Hogan plays the wrestler Rip Thomas trying to overcome his evil boss looking to ruin his life and career outside of the ring. No Holds Barred was deemed another flop in the acting of career of Hogan. The movie has just a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes to show how few liked it.
6 Suburban Commando: 15%
Hulk Hogan took one of his wilder acting roles as the lead star of the Suburban Commando film in 1991. The role saw Hogan playing an Interstellar warrior spending time on Earth with the hijinks that followed him feeling out of place.
Suburban Commando was another movie to receive negative reactions from critics. The 15% score on Rotten Tomatoes shows that Hogan was destined to get roles in some of the worst movies of the ‘90s due to how society viewed wrestling.
5 Gnomeo & Juliet: 55%
The animated film Gnomeo & Juliet was one of the more recent acting roles of Hulk Hogan back in 2011. A movie about two garden gnomes falling in love received a lackluster 55% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but it was one of Hogan’s better scores.
Hogan voiced the character of Terrafirminator in a smaller role on the cast. Names like Emily Blunt, James McAvoy, Michael Caine, Patrick Stewart and Ozzy Obsourne were the bigger names. Hogan was added in a secondary role, but it still counts on his acting resume.
4 Muppets From Space: 63%
One of the cooler movies Hulk Hogan received a role in was the Muppets From Space film in 1999. The Muppets were and are still a beloved franchise known for Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and other legendary puppet characters having fun moments.
Hogan played a member of the villains known as C.O.V.N.E.T. in a cameo role. Various Muppets movies used the fun cameos to add to the overall entertainment value. Muppets From Space received a decent rating of 63% for one of Hogan’s better films.
3 Rocky III: 66%
The acting role most associated with Hulk Hogan’s acting career saw him playing Thunderlips in Rocky III. Hollywood witnessed the Rocky movie franchise taking over the box office and it was a huge opportunity for Hogan to have a noteworthy scene.
Thunderlips was a wrestler facing Rocky in an exhibition match and had one of the most entertaining scenes in the highly successful movie. Rocky III received an overall 66% rating since there were some flaws, but it didn’t fall on Hogan this time since he did well in his role.
2 Gremlins 2: The New Batch: 71%
Hulk Hogan had a tremendous cameo in Gremlins 2: The New Batch film as a sequel to the successful Gremlins movie. There was strong anticipation for a sequel that ended up getting met with a warm reception from viewers.
The movie received a 71% rating on the Rotten Tomatoes site for a solid score. Hogan played himself in a movie theater essentially cutting a promo on the gremlins that were ruining the movie. It was a fun cameo out of nowhere that added some humor to the movie.
1 Robot Chicken: Star Wars: 100%
The television series Robot Chicken on Cartoon Network received a mini movie to air on the Adult Swim block. Robot Chicken: Star Wars featured a comedic portrayal of various Star Wars characters, along with historical figures getting involved.
Hulk Hogan had a secondary role as the voice of Abraham Lincoln for a funny appearance. The movie only has five reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, but they are all positive for the flawless 100% score as Hogan’s highest rated movie.