Former AEW World Champion Eyes Hollywood Acting Career

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Swerve Strickland has a list of action franchises he would love to be part of, and the depth of thought he has already put into acting. Speaking with TMZ Inside the Ring, Strickland explained that he has been studying film for years, not purely as a fan but as a performer seeking lessons he can apply to his wrestling work.

"Movies and cinema is like, that's part of who I am, as far as like growing up on this side of the screen. Growing up on it, I'm a fan of a lot of actors. Daniel Day-Lewis, one of my favorite performers. Oh, tremendous. Like Edward Norton. Brad Pitt's one of my favorites I've watched. I've studied a lot of these people. Studied Denzel, studied Damson Idris. Studied a lot of these guys, just watching a lot of these little nuances of what they do to take that into what I do."

He was clear that converting that passion into a Hollywood career is an entirely different undertaking, one he wants to approach with the same preparation that has defined his wrestling development.

"Now to be where they are in their position, that's a different monster, especially Hollywood in itself. So I would say it starts all over again. I got to understand and learn the craft first, to now find the passion. Then to tackle that to be ready for those opportunities."

When asked which franchise he would most want to be part of, Strickland named three and explained the specific qualities of each that draw him in.

"If I had to choose one? It's a lot. Honestly, I would like to be in the Extraction franchises. Like what Chris Hemsworth's doing right now? Amazing camera work. And it looks like such challenging stunt work, such challenging stunt choreography. And being former military, that attracts me to it a lot. It's like, 'Man, what could I do in that universe?' And then like the Man on Fire stuff with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, he's killing it right now too. And I was like, 'Man, imagine if I got thrown into that universe and that series.'"

He also singled out the John Wick franchise for its cinematographic innovation, citing a overhead sequence in John Wick 4 as an example of filmmaking that excites him as a student of the medium.

"The John Wick universe, like the gunplay and the manipulations of all like, the shot of the camera being above the set in John Wick 4 looking like — what's the game? Hotline Miami. Like the over above, the shot with the fire shotgun and stuff. I'm like, 'Who thinks of that and how do you pull that off so efficiently?' So those things, I like. I look at a lot of camera work."

Strickland returned to AEW television late last month with a vignette targeting Bandido, with Double or Nothing being discussed as a potential landing spot for the matchup.