What is Dave Bautista's net worth? Wrestler-turned-actor was paid $1.4M for first 'Guardians of the Galaxy'
Former WWE professional wrestler, Dave Bautista, who is best known for his stint as Drax in MCU's 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 1 &2', 'Avengers: Infinity War', and 'Avengers: Endgame', is all set for his new film directed by Zack Snyder. Bautista, 52 stars in Snyders's high voltage Zombie heist drama, 'Army of the Dead', which is all set to air on Netflix on May 21, 2020.
The Hollywood star was a 4-time World Heavyweight Champion and two-time winner of the WWE championship before pursuing acting. He is regarded as one of the greatest World Heavyweight Champions in WWE history. The retired wrestler is now one of the most bankable stars of Hollywood today, so it is only right that fans get curious to know how the actor manages his growing wealth. Here's a look at his net worth.
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Dave Bautista's early life
Born on January 18, 1969, in Washington DC, Bautista comes is of Greek descent (from mother's side) and Filipino immigrants (from father's side). Bautista's childhood was spent in poverty. He began stealing cars at the age of 13. He separated from his parents at the age of 17 and lived on his own. Bautista worked as a nightclub bouncer and was sentenced to one year of probation after an ugly brawl during his tenure. He then worked as a lifeguard before pursuing bodybuilding.
Dave Bautista's WWE career
The year 1999 saw the start of Bautista's wrestling career and in 2000, he signed with the WWE (then- WWF). Bautista shot to fame under the ring name, Batista from 2002 to 2010. He went on to become a six-time world champion by winning the World Heavyweight Championship four times(2005-2008) and the WWE Championship twice (20009-2010). His first reign with the World Heavyweight Championship is regarded as the longest reign for that title with 282 days. Bautista also has the World Tag Team Championship three times (twice with Ric Flair and once with John Cena) and the WWE Tag Team Championship once (with Rey Mysterio) in his name.
Batista retired from WWE in 2013 after winning the 2014 Royal Rumble match only to make a comeback on January 20, 2014, to confront WWE World Heavyweight Champion of that time, Randy Orton. Bautista quit WWE in 2014 and returned again in October 2018. At WrestleMania on April 7, 2019, Batista lost to Triple H and announced his retirement from WWE for good the next day. On December 9, 2019, WWE officially inducted Bautista into the WWE Hall of Fame as a part of the Class of 2020.
Dave Bautista's acting journey
Bautista started acting in 2006 but his break had come with the feature film, 'The Man with the Iron Fists' (2012). he is also famously regarded for his notable work in 'Riddick' (2013), the James Bond film 'Spectre' (2015) and 'Blade Runner' 2049 (2017). The wrestler-turned-actor is best known as Drax the Destroyer in the films MCU's 'Guardians of the Galaxy' (2014), 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2' (2017), 'Avengers: Infinity War' (2018) and 'Avengers: Endgame' (2019).
Dave Bautista's family
Bautista has two daughters, Keilani and Athena from his first wife, Glenda, whom he married in 1990. The couple got a divorce in 1998. Bautista's second marriage with Angie in 1998 lasted for eight years as they split in 2006, The couple has a son named Oliver. Bautista also two grandsons through Keilani. Bautista married for the third time in 2015. His third wife, Sarah Jade split up with him in early 2019.
Dave Bautista's net worth
Bautista is said to have received an estimated amount of over $1 million during his tenure with WWE until 2010. His acting career then added millions to Bautista's net worth. Bautista received an amount of $1400000 for his role as Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 1, and for Vol 2 of the same, he earned an estimated sum of over $3 million. For Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, he earned over $4 million. Most of his earnings have been derived from his career as a WWE wrestler and a movie star; in 2004 he earned around $800,000 from WWE and for his role for Chronicles of Riddick, according to The Richest. Alongside this, his pay from WWE was cut in half to $434,000 in 2012 and he received $693,000 for 'The Scorpion King 3',$1 million for 'Spectre', $1.4 million for the first Guardians of the Galaxy and $1.7 million for LA Slasher.
As of 2021, Dave Bautista's net worth is estimated to be over $16 million according to WealthyGorilla.
The sought-after Hollywood star has a lot of films slated for release in his kitty, including Zack Snyder’s 'Army of the Dead', Denis Villeneuve’s 'Dune', and MCU's 'Thor: Love and Thunder'.