Which Hollywood actor hired Dave Bautista as a bodyguard? Insights into odd jobs undertaken by The Animal before he joined WWE

Former WWE star Dave Bautista, known to the wrestling world as Batista, was one of the most prominent faces of the company's Ruthless Aggression Era. After a successful run in the promotion, the multi-time world champion embarked on a fairly successful acting career in Hollywood.

The Animal has been quite open about his tumultuous and difficult past prior to becoming a professional wrestler. He grew up in a violent neighborhood in Washington, D.C., with a low-income family and spent a lot of time as a bouncer for a nightclub. The 54-year-old wrestling legend recently appeared on CBS' The Talk, providing insight into another job he undertook before joining WWE.

Batista revealed that he was once a bodyguard for 2005 Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx. The multi-time world champion looked out for Foxx for a day when the famed actor was in town for a stand-up comedy show. The Django Unchained actor didn't recognize his former bodyguard when they met a few years later but remembered a massive guy watching his back.

From a bouncer to a bodyguard to one of Hollywood's most recognizable faces, Dave Bautista has an inspirational and rocky road to success. The Animal was also a significant star during his WWE career, where he main-evented WrestleMania twice in 2005 and 2014.

Fortunately for him, the former WWE Champion wrapped up his wrestling career on his terms when he had his final No Holds Barred match against Triple H at WrestleMania 35. Dave Bautista has remained away from the company ever since but is rumored for a Hall of Fame induction pretty soon.

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Former WWE star Dave Bautista was recently praised heavily by a major director

Dave Bautista has found his footing as an actor. From landing marquee roles in MCU's Guardians of The Galaxy franchise to tormenting James Bond in Spectre, he has almost become a household name. However, his efforts haven't gone unrecognized by the industry itself.

Rian Johnson, director of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, recently had immense praise for the former WWE Champion. Johnson confidently called Batista the greatest wrestler-turned-actor.

"[Batista is] Low-key the greatest wrestler-to-actor ever. I absolutely 100 percent agree. And I think somebody like [Paul Thomas Anderson] is going to give him a real part and is gonna look like a genius."

Johnson has put the future Hall of Famer in a category above John Cena and The Rock.

Despite his success in Hollywood, fans have been clamoring for a return of The Animal. It remains to be seen whether Batista will return to WWE for one last run.