AUSTIN, TEXAS: Undoubtedly, Joe Rogan is one of the most powerful influencers in the sphere of social media. Within the past few years, the UFC color commentator has gained a massive base of followers, thanks to his podcast, 'The Joe Rogan Experience'. However, most of his fans still do not know that the outspoken podcaster was once offered to star in a movie alongside the MMA legend Michael Jai White.
Notably, Eddie Bravo, a martial arts teacher, has had a long friendship with Rogan, and that was his link to White, who also trained with Bravo. After meeting Rogan, White approached him to collaborate on a film, so keep reading to know what happened to the project.
'He wasn’t crazy about doing movies'
During a YouTube interview with VladTV, White disclosed that he and Rogan have been friends for a long time. The MMA star also opened up about offering the 55-year-old podcaster a supporting role in his film, 'Blood and Bone', one the greatest low-budget martial arts films ever produced. "I have known Joe Rogan for a long, long time and, incidentally, I offered him the co-lead role in ‘Blood and Bone’ back in the day," White stated in the interview.
Rogan, however, was not interested in performing in films. Back then, he was involved in the stand-up comedy community and wanted to concentrate on developing his skills as a comic. "He turned it down because he really wanted to focus on his comedy. He wasn’t crazy about doing movies," White expressed, adding, "But I personally offered that to Joe Rogan, the ‘Pinball’ character. The guy who was managing [me]." Notably, the said role was later played by Dante Basco.
Joe Rogan’s successful career
Rogan launched his 'JRE' podcast on December 24, 2009, making it one of the first to be present on the Internet. However, he had no idea that his program would eventually grow to have a massive following, turning him into a crucial personality in the online world. The UFC commentator essentially grew in popularity by inviting guests to his podcast, who belonged from all walks of life, offering fascinating conversations about a range of topics.
The 'JRE' podcast gained so much traction that Spotify approached Rigan with a lucrative offer to host his program exclusively on their platform. Other than that, Rogan has achieved fame as a part of the UFC broadcasting crew apart from being a key player in the promotion of Dana White because of his outstanding fight-related responses and observations. As a long-time comic, he has launched a comedy club called Comedy Mothership in Austin, Texas.