Conor McGregor famously declared that he would apologize to absolutely nobody after became the first ever simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history but it turns out he might actually have a couple of regrets regarding his career outside the cage.
As he was ascending to superstardom in the UFC, McGregor suddenly became a primary target for Hollywood with directors and actors clamoring for the chance to work with him. Rumors swirled for years that McGregor was considering one project or another but he ultimately didn’t commit to anything until finally signing onto star in the upcoming Road House reboot due out on March 21.
Looking back now, McGregor admits he probably rubbed some people the wrong way showing interest in some projects but then never actually accepting the roles offered to him.
“I had turned down a good few roles in my time on the climb,” McGregor told Total Film. “I’ve had directors show up at fight camp, really beautiful directors doing really top-end movies … and over and over, they’d come to me, and I always turned them down.
“I’d leave people a little high and dry. I probably have a few enemies out there that I don’t really know of because I had said, ‘I might do it.’”
Back in 2016, McGregor was announced as a new cast member joining Vin Diesel in xXx: The Return of Xander Cage only to drop out of the project following a shocking loss to Nate Diaz. Diesel claimed McGregor had a role written specifically for him but “had to go get his manhood back” after suffering his first defeat in the UFC.
The director on that project DJ Caruso said he was “really pissed” when McGregor backed out of the film with his part ultimately going to fellow UFC veteran Michael Bisping.
With copious amounts of downtime as he recovered from a broken leg suffered in his last fight with Dustin Poirier in 2021, McGregor decided that the Road House reboot would serve as the perfect entry into an acting career, although it doesn’t sound like he’s going to start jumping at more offers any time soon.
McGregor makes it clear that fighting is still his priority but he enjoyed his role as Knox — a hired gun sent to take out Jake Gyllenhaal’s character in the film — and he’s glad he waited for Road House for his acting debut.
“I was just in awe of it all, to be honest with you, the whole process,” McGregor said. “I didn’t know how I was going to take to it. I didn’t know whether I was going to like it, to be honest. I’m a fighting man – that’s my bread and butter. It’s where I come from.
“I’m not an actor, but I’m show business. That was my vibe to it. I felt that. I enjoyed every second of it.”
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