Israel Adesanya prefers fights over flicks… for now.
In the lead-up to his next title defense against kickboxing rival Alex Pereira, the UFC Middleweight Champion got a few offers from Hollywood to go into acting. Unfortunately for them, the only big screen Adesanya wants to be on right now is this weekend’s pay-per-view.
Creed 3
At UFC 281 media day, Adesanya would reveal that one of those offers would be for a role in ‘Creed 3’, the next boxing movie in the ‘Rocky’ franchise starring Michael B. Jordan and Jonathan Majors.
“I would’ve filmed for Creed 3 probably maybe two weeks ago. But, I turned it down.” Adesanya told Middle Easy. “Now, that’s like the fourth one I’ve turned down. Cause again, [MMA] is what I’m doing right now. I’m great at this. I’m learning a lot at this.”
‘The Last Stylebender’ has had previous success in the entertainment industry, voice acting for the character ‘Chamomile Lessen’ in Netflix’s anime ‘Baki Hanma’ in 2021.
‘It’s Always Gonna Be There’
While Adesanya has pushed recent movie offers to the side, the UFC Champion is confident that Hollywood is an avenue he can always come back to.
“It’s always gonna be there,” Adesanya said of acting. “Voiceover work is right there. I have a lot of anime ideas I’m gonna put out there as my production company. So, all that sh*t’s for later on. Right now, I’m one of the baddest motherf*ckers in the b*tch, so I’m going to keep doing that.”
Just like the plot of ‘Creed 3’, Israel Adesanya will look to conquer his past when he meets former foe Alex Pereira at UFC 281.