Dave Batista would be wracked with nerves and ill before walking out in front of the WWE Universe, the retired wrestler-turned-acting megastar has revealed.

Batista signed with WWE in 2000 and debuted on the main roster two years later. One of the company's top stars of the 2000s, Batista would become a six-time World Champion and headlined WrestleMania multiple times. He is also a multiple-time Tag Team Champion. In 2020 he was announced for the WWE Hall of Fame but withdrew his induction due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He has yet to be inducted.

Since leaving wrestling, Batista has become a major star in Hollywood and will be part of Dune: Part Two when the film hits cinemas later this week. Sitting down with Arizona News, Batista spoke about the angry Glossu Rabban he plays in the film, and how he gets motivated for such a performance.

"It's funny, because that came so natural to me. If there's anything that I took away from professional wrestling, it's being angry. I'm really good at being angry."

Speaking more about how wrestling has influenced his acting career, Batista recalled being wracked with nerves before appearing and how he overcame this anxiety.

"It's anxiety, when I started wrestling, I was literally physically sick before I walked out [from] the curtain. I used to walk out the curtain and [screams.] And all my anxiety was gone. And that's what it is. I get nervous, I get self-conscious, then I get anxious, but as soon as I go [screams] it goes away. It's easy for me to do that. And I can relax from there."


After establishing himself in wrestling and acting, Batista hopes to make his debut as a director next year. The Animal is yet to receive his long-overdue WWE Hall of Fame induction, and said recently he'd prefer the induction over a spot in James Gunn's DC Universe.