Rather than remain in the action-movie arena, Dave Bautista has made an effort to take on roles that would show off his dramatic chops. Speaking to Insider, he discussed how this came to a head for him during the production of “Knock at the Cabin” and how he’ll always be his own worst critic:
“There was not one moment on this film where I felt confident; I doubted myself the whole time. Even when I screened this film for the first time a few weeks ago, I cringed. I told [M. Night Shyamalan] throughout the shooting, and the editing, that I have so much anxiety about this film and how people are going to receive me. Not the film, me. My performance. Because it’s just a different light on me and, again, this is where I have to back up what I say, which all along has been that I just want to be an actor. Strip away my physicality, forget that. Judge me on my acting. And it’s about to happen. [Laughs.] So the anxiety is real.”
For what it’s worth, early reviews are full of praise for Bautista’s work in “Knock at the Cabin.” /Film’s Chris Evangelista lauded him for “pushing himself” and “playing against type.” Inverse’s Hoai-Tran Bui says the former wrestler gives a “career-best performance.” And he’s been lauded by others for “showing his range” and “digging deeper into the timid sincerity and striking naivete.”
Bautista seems to have accomplished what he set out to do with “Knock at the Cabin.” “Here was my opportunity to be in the spot, and I feel good about it,” he told Looper. “Because if nothing else, I proved my point, which was that I never set out to be a movie star, I wanted to be a respected actor.”