How Rey Mysterio Got Injured While Filming The Disastrous WCW Movie 'Ready To Rumble'
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Highlights
- Rey Mysterio's successful wrestling career has come with many sacrifices and severe injuries, including a knee injury sustained while filming the movie Ready to Rumble.
- Despite his smaller size, Mysterio became a main-event talent in WWE and has won multiple World Championships, earning the nickname "The Giant Killer" for defeating heavyweight opponents.
- Mysterio's lucha libre style and high-flying maneuvers have influenced and opened doors for other smaller wrestlers to be taken seriously in the industry.
Rey Mysterio had to go through many sacrifices to be considered among the all-time best professional wrestlers in the industry, especially for someone his size. Although he's had an overwhelmingly successful career in the professional wrestling industry, most notably with WWE, Mysterio has a track record of severe injuries that affected his in-ring career, showing the risks he's willing to take. Some fans may not realize this but one of Rey Mysterio's injuries as a professional wrestler came from while he was acting in the Ready to Rumble film, a professional wrestling-themed movie in 2000 starring David Arquette.
RELATED: 8 Things You Forgot About Rey Mysterio's Time Without A Mask In WCW
Rey Mysterio's Legacy As A Successful Luchador
Now a WWE Hall of Famer, Rey Mysterio has had one of the best in-ring careers in professional wrestling, as he's among the most recognizable names in WWE. Someone who was initially known for being a cruiserweight talent, especially during his several-year run in World Championship Wrestling, despite being much smaller, Mysterio went on to become a successful main-event talent in WWE. Winning his first World Title at WrestleMania 22 and going on to become a three-time World Champion in WWE, Mysterio has fought and beaten the best in business. They don't call Rey Mysterio "The Giant Killer" for nothing, as he's had wins over heavyweight talent like Kevin Nash, Kane, Big Show, and JBL.
One of the many things Mysterio's most known for is his Lucha libre style, being listed among the best high-flyers in professional wrestling history. A multiple-time Cruiserweight Champion from both WWE and WCW, Mysterio's among the most influential figures that utilized the Lucha libre style of professional wrestling and made it an attraction in the United States. As modern professional wrestling showcases much of the high-flying style with smaller professional wrestlers being main-event players, one could cite Rey Mysterio as among the list of wrestlers that opened the door for other professional wrestlers to be taken seriously in that light.
RELATED: Chavo Guerrero Slams Rey Mysterio For Benefiting Off Of Eddie's And The Guerrero Name
Rey Mysterio's History Of Injuries
Rey Mysterio's legendary career came at a heavy cost, as it's no secret that he's had a long list of severe injuries that took significant time off his in-ring career. For instance, not long after winning his first World Title in WWE, Rey Mysterio sustained a severe knee injury that required surgery in late 2006. He missed almost a year of in-ring action until returning at Summerslam 2007.
And it's also worth noting during the final years of Rey Mysterio's first run in WWE, several injuries caused him to miss much of that time before he departed from the company in 2015.
Rey Mysterio Once Got Injured While Filming 'Ready To Rumble'
Rey Mysterio also sustained injuries in certain situations that some may not know about. An example of this would be when he took part in the Ready to Rumble movie that came out in 2000 when he was in WCW. The Ready to Rumble film starred many professional wrestlers, notably from WCW, while featuring other notable uncredited talent like a pre-WWE John Cena. Rey Mysterio portrayed himself as an on-screen character, as he appeared unmasked in the film.
During the filming of this movie, Mysterio injured his knee while performing a Frankensteiner maneuver on the top rope, as he had to do multiple takes to get the right shot. Unfortunately for Rey Mysterio, because of the physicality he endured during the filming of the movie, he took time off from in-ring from late 1999 to early 2000 to heal his knee injury.
Mysterio wasn't the only notable talent to get injured from getting physical from acting in a TV show or movie. Some might be aware that Lita once had to miss over a year of in-ring action due to a physical accident while acting in the Dark Angel TV show, undergoing neck surgery from a stinger she suffered after a botched move.
RELATED: Rey Mysterio's Body Transformation Over The Years, Told In PhotosRey Mysterio's knee injury from acting in the movie was unfortunate, but thankfully, he was able to continue his in-ring career for years to come. And even though Ready to Rumble wasn't exactly the most critically-acclaimed movie out there, fans might find it enticing that the movie was the first time Rey Mysterio starred in a film.
