8 Athletes Turned Actors

Celebrity athletes aren't normally thought of as being movie stars, but there have been more celebrity athletes in movies than people may initially think. With a variety of rolls and not counting if people think body building is a sport, there are many well known names in sport also represented in acting lists.

Probably the most famous example - and a celebrity that has fallen from favor so badly he's someone most won't mention - is O.J. Simpson, with an acting career on the small screen that included Dragnet, Ironside, Goldie and the Boxer, Back to the Beach and In the Heat of the Night. He had appeared in The Naked Gun series, from the1988 initial movie to "The Smell of Fear in 1991 and The Final Insult in 1994. He also had a part in Roots and Back To the Beach. On the football field he played for USC and won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and was the firsts player selected in the 1969 draft based on his Heisman Trophy. His career for the Buffalo Bills averaged 10 yards higher than the closest competitor and in 1973 won the Hickok Belt for the top professional athlete of the year. He was All-Pro honored five times, with an 11 year career that totaled 11,236 rushing yards, 203 receptions, 2,142 receiving yards and 75 touchdowns. He's the first Heisman winner elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Unfortunately his more recent criminal activities have overshadowed his acting and sports careers.

Arnold Schwarzenegger has multiple major titles in body building as well as notably on the big screen in movies such as the Conan series the Terminator series, Commando, The Running Man, Red Heat, The 6^th Day, Kindergarten Cop, Total Recall and Predator. He won five Mr. Universe titles and holds the record for the youngest to ever win Mr. Olympia, which he won seven times. His work on the big screen from the famous line "I'll be back" has made him larger than life on the screen too. His third career, as governor of California, is arguably the toughest yet.

NBA Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain is another sports standout with some big screen experience, his in Conan The Destroyer next to Arnold Schwarzenegger. His career on the basketball court began in 1959 with Philadelphia and ended in 1973 ini Los angeles with a game 1045 starts and 13 All-Star games. He averaged 4.4 points per game over his career that also included playing in San Francisco.

Cam Neely was a first round daft choice for Vancouver on the hockey ring before in 1986 moving to the Boston Bruins where he played until 1996. He's considered the #1 power forward of his era and set some high standards on the ice that earned him a place in the Hockey Hall of Fame. He gives back with the Cam Neely Foundation for Cancer Care and appeared in Dumb and Dumber.

Dennis Rodman was the NBA All-Defensive Team Player of the Year twice, with seven times on the first team, 7 consecutive rebound titles, and five NBA championships. His movies were slightly less award winning in Simon Sez and Double Team.

If there's a name in football that one doesn't have to be a fan to associate with the sport one would surely be Joe Namath. One of the legends of football he played for many years for the New York Jets. One of the top athletes of any sport and in the top 100 Greatest Football Players according to the Sporting News, he was and is an icon for the sport. His appearance in CC & Company dwarfs his performance in sport. In the Hall of Fame he played in 77 wins and 108 losses, with a career 173 touchdowns 220 interceptions and 13 years in the sport ending his career with the Rams. In high school he was an outstanding athlete in football, basketball and baseball and he actually had offers from Major League Baseball teams in addition to football. After moving to an acting career he was on many very popular shows of the time including The Brady Bunch, Laugh-In, Dean Martin Show, and had his own show for awhile.

Gary Stevens began as a jockey in the northwest and was the top jockey at Longacres in 1983-84 before moving to southern California. Multiple riding titles followed as well as riding in some of the biggest races and on some of the best horses in the world. He won the Kentucky Derby on Winning Colors, a filly - the third time that had been done. He had also won the race with Thunder Gulch in 1995 and Sliver Charm in 1997 and was within a flare of Silver Charm's nose of winning a Triple Crown, being caught at the wire that year in the Belmont Stakes. Overcoming injuries he retired in 1999 then came back to ride Point Given in the Derby and although he didn't win the race he did win the next two with the red colt. He won 8 Breeders Cup Races, was the Eclipse Award winner for outstanding jockey in 1998, won three Kentucky Derbies, two Preakness Stakes and three Belmont Stakes. He also won the $2million Dubai Golden Shaheen Godolphin Mile, Arlington Million and many other big races. He holds a record 9 Santa Anita Derby wins and was elected into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1997. Gary entered the world of Hollywood playing legendary jockey George Woolf in Seabiscuit which also featured Hall of Famer Chris McCarron as the jockey of War Admiral. He was a natural for the screen but has stuck with horse racing as a career, with a stable based at Santa Anita.

Brian Bosworth was a standout from the University of Oklahoma who in 1987 set the biggest rookie contract in NFL history and the biggest contact in Seahawk history. Signing for $11million for 10 years he played two. An acting career followed from 1991-2005. Stone Coldand Down and Distance are just two of the many appearances he's made as an actor. He's also appeared in Three Kings, Back in Business and on Nash Bridges and CSI: Miami.

Talented and sometimes controversial athletes turned actors are not that unusual.