Propelled Into Our Memories

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Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Written by Tom Fortner

Something I always enjoy when watching a movie is when I discover that one of the actors is famous for something other than acting. As a recent example, I was extremely pleased to see Jason Isbell and Jack White, both amazing musicians, in Killers of the Flower Moon last year.

It seems that professional wrestlers are often the ones in these roles. I’m not sure why exactly that is, but it’s definitely interesting. Think of obvious wrestlers-to-actors like The Rock, John Cena, and Dave Bautista. 

Today, we’re going to be talking about a wrestler in a movie that isn’t even close to being as famous as the three mentioned above, but who still has a pretty impressive filmography. It’s Pat Roach in Raiders of the Lost Ark!

Who?

You might have no idea who Pat Roach is, but don’t worry, I was in the same boat with you. Roach was an English professional wrestler who performed under the name “Bomber” Pat Roach. He was the National Judo Champion in 1960 and won the Pacific Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Championship, as well as the British Heavyweight Championship in 1986.

He began his acting career as a bouncer in the milk bar at the beginning of Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange and later in Barry Lyndon as Toole, the large soldier that Barry Lyndon fist fights. He was pretty well known for a popular British comedy show called Auf Wiedersehen, Pet. Lastly, he played a myriad of burly customers in the original Indiana Jones trilogy, the first of which we’ll be talking about today.

Propelled Into Our Memories

Looking back at Raiders, I’m blown away by how many iconic moments there are in the film. The truck chase, shooting the swordsman, the snake pit, etc. Truly, this film is chock full of incredible adventure and breathtaking set pieces. It’s so much fun!

At least for me, one scene that I’ll always remember is when Indy has to fight the burly German aviator while the plane is spinning in circles. As a kid that was one of the most intense scenes in a film I had ever seen. So I was surprised when I found out the German in one of my favorite scenes in the film was played by a wrestler, Pat Roach!

It’s not like Roach is imparting a brilliant scene of acting to us, but he’s really effective. All he really has to do is stand there and look big for one scene, which seems like it would be pretty easy for him, but he turns out to be really memorable. I think that part of what makes this scene so good is that Roach wants to fight. He exits the hut and grins excitedly. This is fun for him! That ease and excitement makes Roach seem stronger than he is because he has confidence. I’m sure that wasn’t Roach’s idea, but he plays it perfectly. Of course, that scream at the end is pretty great too!

Today’s Scene