Born:
January 18, 1969
in
Washington D.C.
Best Known For:
Playing Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy.
Early-life:
David Michael Bautista Jr was born in Washington, D.C. on January 18, 1969. His parents separated and later divorced. Dave lived in poverty and, from as young as age 13, stole cars. By 17, he lived on his own and became a regular bouncer until he was arrested after a fight. He also worked as a lifeguard before becoming a bodybuilder.
Career:
Bautista became a professional wrestler and signed to WWE under the ring name Batista from 2000 to 2010 and from 2013 to 2014. Among his wrestling accolades, he is a six-time world champion, having won WWE's World Heavyweight Championship four times and the WWE Championship twice. He entered the acting business in 2006 and has since starred in The Man with the Iron Fists (2012), Riddick (2013), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) and the James Bond film Spectre (2015). Bautista also has a mixed martial arts (MMA) career. He signed a contract with Classic Entertainment and Sports to fight in MMA and won his debut in 2012, representing the Philippines.
Quote:
"I was actually sitting on stage at a press conference one day, and I totally lost touch with reality. I just thought to myself: 'Vin Diesel is sitting next to me, and Benicio Del Toro's on the other side. This is weird, man.'"
Trivia:
He is an accomplished breakdancer.