Massive legend says his mother thought he was "crazy" to leave WWE for a career change a few years ago

A WWE legend recently opened up about leaving the Stamford-based company to pursue another dream. He disclosed that his mother thought he was crazy to make that decision at the time.

Batista, the legend in question, was massively successful in WWE between 2000 and 2010. Although he left the promotion 14 years ago, he made two brief returns in 2014 and 2018 before hanging up his boots following his defeat to Triple H at WrestleMania 35. Since then, the 55-year-old has become a superstar in Hollywood, starring in several movies and television shows.

In a recent interview on The Jennifer Hudson Show, Batista recalled his mother's reaction when he told her he was leaving wrestling to pursue a career in acting in Hollywood. He said that she thought he was "crazy."

"So it was when I left professional wrestling [...] I was like, Mom, I think I'm going to leave professional wrestling. I really want to pursue acting. She said, 'You're crazy.' I said, 'But, you know, it's really what I want to do.' But my mom is my biggest fan and we are extremely close," he said. [H/T: Fightful]

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Batista wants another top WWE star to follow in his footsteps

In a recent interview with BuzzFeed Celeb, Batista expressed his desire to see WWE Superstar CM Punk step away from wrestling and pursue a career in Hollywood like he did.

The Animal claimed The Best in the World was overlooked as an actor, dubbing him as "great." He pointed out that he believed the RAW star's acting potential was unlimited.

"Oh, you know who I think was really overlooked as an actor, I don't know if he hasn't pursued it as much as he'd like to because he's still heavily pursuing professional wrestling, but is CM Punk, Phil Brooks. His potential in acting is pretty unlimited. So, I really wanna see more from him in acting. And I'd really love to work with him, cause I think he has a passion for acting. But I think still his heart is in professional wrestling. Until he's able to let that go a little bit, he'll never be able to fully envelop himself in acting. But I think Phil Brooks is, he's a great actor," he said.

Punk's current WWE rival, Drew McIntyre, played a role in Batista's latest movie, "The Killer's Game." It would be interesting to see if The Best in the World would also one day work with The Animal in Hollywood.