Update on Chris Benoit movie, WWE legend makes bold prediction on Eva Marie, FOX TV - Wrestling
- Last week, Dave Meltzer, owner of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter revived a long-held rumor that actor Liev Schreiber would be playing the late Chris Benoit in the movie, Crossface. However the news turned out to be incorrect. The Observer noted the casting announcement was a bit “premature”, as one of the producers told that Liev would not be playing Benoit, but the movie is still happening. According to someone originally involved, this was the first they had heard of the film’s progress in several years. The script for the film was written by Sarah Coulter, a former Weinstein Company employee, and adapted from the book Ring of Hell by Matthew Randazzo.
For those unfamiliar, Benoit was an esteemed pro-wrestler who murdered his wife and young son before committing suicide in 2007. Crossface was the name of a submission wrestling maneuver that Mr. Benoit was famous for using. He was largely revered everywhere he went. What he did in the final hours of his life instantly and permanently offset any good he worked to build.
- Meanwhile, FOX is working on a TV drama series based on pro wrestling. The project is currently in development and is undergoing script revisions.
- Yesterday we noted WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley giving some encouragement to Eva Marie for her in-ring improvements after her win over Billie Kay on WWE NXT last night. Continuing with that this morning the WWE legend took to his Facebook page to make a bold prediction about the future of the WWE Diva, stating Eva will be in a big match with one of WWE’s top Divas within one year. Below is his Facebook post:
FOLEY PREDICTS
WITHIN ONE YEAR ?#WWE? Diva ?#EvaMarie? will be in a great match at a big show with ?#SashaBanks? ?#BeckyLynch? ?#MsCharlotte? ?#Bayley? ?#Natalya? or ?#Paige? I’m not saying the match will be all her doing, but history doesn’t remember who came up with the ideas, or who carried the match; history remembers who was in it. And despite the problems she seems to have with some of her ?#TotalDivas? co-stars, fellow wrestlers, and the heat – bordering on nuclear – that she has with some wrestling fans, Eva Marie’s improvement from week to week in recent matches has shown me she has the drive, determination, and that intangible “it” factor necessary to accomplish something special with one of the super-talented ladies of WWE/NXT.
Eva Marie takes flack for the personal training she receives from Brian Kendrick. As far as I’m concerned, there is no “one size fits all” method of training. Sure, almost all developmental talent undergoes extensive training at the Performance Center in Florida, where Sara Del Ray– one of my personal heroes – has played an invaluable role in dramatically transforming the expectations for what fans have come to expect from ?#WomensWrestling?. But it looks to me like Eva Marie is progressing nicely with the one-on-one work she’s done with Kendrick. While watching season 3 of ?#ToughEnough? on ?#WWENetwork? today, my kids were SHOCKED to see the rough treatment Bob Holly dished out to Matt Cappotelli. But check out the treatment this young trainee receives at the hands of legendary Japanese female wrestler Chigusa Nagayo at about the 6:00 mark of ?#GaeaGirls? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=245zlx98wTo and you can almost feel Bob Holly saying “Chigusa, take it easy on the poor kid.” When my kids asked me who the meanest trainer of them all is, and I said “Brian Kendrick”, they let out a huge laugh. For the life of me, I just can’t imagine Kendrick intentionally kicking in someone’s teeth, or breaking someone’s nose. But Kendrick is a GREAT trainer, with a gift for bringing out the best in students – and, from what I can see, Eva Marie has been the beneficiary of that gift.
I’m not saying that Eva will be able to approach some of the masterpieces I’ve seen in the last 16 months – from Natalya/Charlotte to the Fatal 4 Way, to Bank’s statements (see what I did there) with Becky Lynch and Bayley. But within a year, one of those ladies is going to find themselves standing in the ring with the much maligned Eva Marie…and something great will happen.