Published: Jun 27, 2025 by Sanchez Taylor | Last Updated: Jun 27, 2025 by Sanchez Taylor
Sanchez has over six years of pro-wrestling news writing experience, covering the biggest news stories in WWE, NXT, AEW, TNA Wrestling and more. He has personally interviewed a number of top stars, producing exclusive content with the likes of AEW's Swerve Strickland and WWE's Nick Aldis.
WWE
Former WWE Champion Dave Bautista has received a big Hollywood honor, being invited to join a major organization.
Bautista – who wrestled as Batista in WWE – has established himself as a top Hollywood actor, breaking the mold with a number of prestigious roles and not allowing himself to be typecast as an action movie star.
The ex-WWE star’s talent has now been acknowledged by the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, who have invited Bautista to become an official member of the organization.
Bautista was one of 33 names invited to join the actor’s branch of the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences – the same organization which awards the Academy Awards/Oscars.
Other names also invited to join this branch included 2025 Oscar winners Mikey Madison and Kieran Culkin, and 2025 Oscar nominees Monica Barbaro, Yura Borisov, Ariana Grande, Sebastian Stan, Jeremy Strong and Fernanda Torres.
These 33 invitees were part of 534 names invited to join the Academy, with talents invited to join various other branches including Animation, Director’s, Writer’s and Producer’s.
Each nominee had two movies they worked on listed next to their name on the Academy’s official announcement. The two movies next to Bautista’s name were Dune Part Two – which was nominated for Best Picture at the 2025 ceremony – and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, the sequel to 2020 Best Original Screenplay nominee Knives Out.
In addition to being able to vote on the Oscars, Dave Bautista joining the Academy would mean that he’d also be able to participate in various programs including educational initiatives, film preservation projects and industry panels.
You can read the Academy’s announcement statement right here.
Bautista has paved the way for numerous WWE stars in Hollywood, with a number of current WWE names slated to appear in upcoming movies.
Roman Reigns’ next Hollywood role has been revealed, which you can read more about right here.
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