Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista on Star Trek: “I was born to be a Klingon”
"Dave Bautista" by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
JUNE 28, 2021 - Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista has thrown his hat into the proverbial ring: in a Twitter exchange over the weekend, he revealed that he’d like to play a Klingon in Star Trek.
The exchange came as part of a conversation started by website Culture Crave, who posted a tweet quoting Bautista as saying “Nah I’m good” in response to a theoretical film with fellow former wrestlers Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena. Bautista retweeted Culture Crave, adding a selection of pictures from his various film roles and the caption, “I figured a visual reference might help. I’d just prefer not to be lumped in. Nothing personal. #DreamChaser”
I figured a visual reference might help. I’d just prefer not to be lumped in. Nothing personal. 🤷🏻♂️ #DreamChaser https://t.co/JFHAaw053F pic.twitter.com/djKZBylIuT
— Poor Kid Who Chased His Dreams. (@DaveBautista) June 26, 2021
Cue Jay Stobie, a freelance writer with bylines on StarTrek.com, among other places. He replied to Bautista’s tweet, saying that he’d love for him to add Star Trek to his credits. Bautista’s reply? “Likewise. I was born to be a Klingon. Just sayin’”
Likewise. I was born to be a Klingon. Just sayin. 🤷🏻♂️ https://t.co/xV7jXpTMlk
— Poor Kid Who Chased His Dreams. (@DaveBautista) June 26, 2021
Now, if Bautista was to find a way into the Star Trek Universe, he’d hardly be the first pro wrestler to make an appearance. He’s preceded by Tom “MegaMan” Magee, who played a Fek’Ihr in the Star Trek: The Next Generation season four episode “Devil’s Due”; the aforementioned Rock, Dwayne Johnson, who appeared in the Star Trek: Voyager season six episode “Tsunkatse”; the late Tommy Lister, Jr., who appeared as Klaang in the Star Trek: Enterprise pilot “Broken Bow”; and Paul Donald Wight II, aka “Big Show”, who appeared as an Orion slaver in the Enterprise season four episode “Borderland”.
In the meantime, you’ll just have to satisfy yourself watching Bautista in one of his other numerous credits. In addition to Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3, which is expected in 2023, he’s also got roles in the upcoming Dune, as well as Knives Out 2, which just started filming. Or you can check him out now in the Netflix Original film Army of the Dead, which also stars Trek’s own Tig Notaro.
