Top AEW star to follow in John Cena's footsteps; ready to join Hollywood

One of AEW's top stars and champions is interested in following in the footsteps of John Cena, MJF, and other pro wrestlers who have pursued acting. The talent in question, Powerhouse Hobbs, has been signed with the Tony Khan-led promotion since 2020.

The Embodiment of Willpower has been running with Katsuyori Shibata and Samoa Joe since the latter asked him to replace an injured Hook in their AEW World Trios Championship match against the Death Riders. The group dethroned Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Wheeler Yuta at Dynamite: Spring BreakThru earlier this year and have held on to the straps since then, defending them against the Bullet Club War Dogs at Forbidden Door 2025 and against Ricochet and GOA on Dynamite last month.

During a recent interview with Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, Hobbs was asked about his interest in possibly pursuing an acting career, similar to how megastars like John Cena, MJF, and his own stablemate Joe have expanded beyond wrestling. The former TNT Champion responded positively to the idea, saying that he indeed plans to appear on the big screen and on TV outside of wrestling.

“Oh yeah, most definitely, man. Who doesn’t want to see me on the big screen or on their TV, besides you know, beating up people weekly? That’s definitely in the plan.” [H/T - TJR Wrestling]

When scripted fights get too real - Watch Here!

Hobbs last wrestled a singles match on AEW programming this past June at Dynamite: Fyter Fest, where he defeated Max Caster in less than a minute.

Powerhouse Hobbs was confronted by a former teammate on AEW Dynamite

When the Death Riders had Darby Allin surrounded and outnumbered last week on Dynamite, Hook arrived to avenge himself against the vicious faction. He also gained reinforcements from The Opps and Willow Nightingale, who helped the babyfaces take down the heel group.

Later on backstage, The Cold-Hearted Handsome Devil confronted Samoa Joe and Powerhouse Hobbs, lashing out at them for fighting his battles and for Joe replacing him with The Monstar when he got injured. The Destroyer explained that Hobbs was added to the group because they had an opportunity to take down the Death Riders. He also insisted, as did Powerhouse, that The Opps would always have Hook's back, although the latter did not seem content with the message.

Samoa Joe, Powerhouse, and Hooks [Image Credits: AEW's YouTube channel]

Notably, the former FTW Champion was stablemates with Hobbs back when they were members of Team Taz.

About the author

Anurag is an AEW writer for Sportskeeda Wrestling. He holds a BA and MA degree in English along with a TEFL certification to teach English. Before Sportskeeda, he worked as a Content and Correspondence writer at Nayabad Titas, a theater group. He has also worked as a English language tutor.

To ensure complete accuracy, he uses internet resources, social media platforms, and especially pieces composed by his peers to find solid, verified information that he presents as objectively as possible. Thanks to his academic background, he can research different subjects thoroughly.

Anurag's interest in wrestling began as a child. He watched RAW and Smackdown frequently from age 10 or 11 and was officially hooked by the YES Movement story in WWE heading into WrestleMania 30.

As a lifelong wrestling fan and lover of stories, Anurag would read news, articles, and other content about the talent and events he enjoyed watching. His understanding of the business continued to grow with time, and his interest in the art and sport of wrestling led him to pursue a career as a writer.

Apart from writing, he loves to read books, watch movies and television programs, play and listen to music, and write poetry and fiction.

Know More

These wrestling matches are not 'fake' at all - Watch!

Edited by Anurag Mukherjee