You have to be a warrior to play one. Or so 6’6”, former wrestler James Preston Rogers hopes. He’s up for the part of Thor, the pagan Norse God of Thunder, the alter ego of medical student Dr. Donald Blake in the Marvel comic. Kenneth Branagh is directing a big budget adaptation of the comic and is reportedly eyeing Brad Pitt, Gerard Butler, Viggo Mortensen and Canada’s Rogers for the lead.
“I’ve lived life. I’ve run the gamut of human emotions”, he continues. “I’ve loved, lost, suffered, cried. But some people think that once you’re over six feet tall, you can’t put one foot in front of the other! I want more! I want to sink my teeth into something. Thor is the closest I’ll get to Hamlet.”
“I think I’m young enough to do a series,” he notes.
Pitt is 45, Butler is 39 and Mortensen’s the old man at 50.
According to legend, Thor is a larger than life warrior, fearsome to gaze upon and mighty -- like a WWE wrestler. And Rogers has been there, done that and learned the lessons.
“Wrestling is a complete form of entertainment,” he explains. “It’s a little lowbrow, but you do your own choreography, you come up with your own character, you dress yourself as your character, you have to be in shape to be marketable and you have to have the wind capacity to carry on a match and in front of the most unforgiving crowd there is. And there’s only one take. You address the crowd and you do it in your underwear!”
"The thing about being a big guy in movies is that you die early. I got beaten up by Woody Harrelson and killed by Tom Selleck and Jim Caviezel in ‘Outlander.’ I’m always dying!” Rogers notes. “This is what appeals to me about playing Thor. He doesn’t die. Where else can I be 6’6’ and be in the forefront? If they’d give me a chance to show what I can do.”
James Preston Rogers
James Rogers on Regis and Kelly and ET
I added these clips from the movie Outlander just so you could get an idea of what he looks like in an action movie, now keep in mind it's a minor role & I don't think he says more than 3 word's, but still.
at 3:08 , the guy on the left that picks up James Caviezel (Shaman's pick for Captain America) & at 6:33 you get to see him.
at the start of this clip JPR fights James Caviezel & 3:25 is the last little bit before he dies.