How Meryl Streep’s Remarks On Mixed Martial Arts Motivated Conor McGregor In Road House

It is said sometimes revenge or the wish to prove someone wrong can act as a motivating force. It looks like, this sentiment worked for Conor McGregor who made his acting debut with Road House. Conor who is a professional mixed martial artist and boxer recently told The Hollywood Reporter that actor Meryl Streep‘s negative comments about mixed martial arts made him want to prove her wrong by working on Road House. Conor was referring to Meryl Streep‘s much-celebrated speech at the 2017 Golden Globes when she accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award.

During her speech, the veteran actor celebrated Hollywood for its diversity following the anti-immigrant sentiment expressed by the Trump administration. However, one of her remarks did not sit well with athletes and martial artists. During her speech, Meryl Streep said, “Hollywood is crawling with outsiders and foreigners. And if we kick them all out, you’ll have nothing to watch but football and mixed martial arts, which are not the arts.”

While speaking to Hollywood Reporter at the film’s premiere, Conor spoke about the ‘art’ of fighting and said, “Fighting is the most beautiful form of art, and you know, it’s a great thing to come into this game, which is also art. I was really taken a back because fighting is an art. It’s brutal also, so I can understand. It’s not for somebody to make a mistake; it’s real artistry for those who do what we do, so I came in to filming Road House with maybe a little chip on my shoulder and wanting to represent my sport and my art, give my best in this arena.”

Before making his way to the entertainment industry, Conor was the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight and Lightweight Champion. He became the first UFC fighter to simultaneously hold UFC championships in two weight classes.

Lukas Gage, who also stars in Road House, spoke about the behind-the-scenes of filming the action film’s fight scenes and said, “It was intense. I never have done stunt training or fight training before. Taking on full stunt training under Steve Brown and Garrett Warren, they did Avatar and some of the best action films, was an honour to learn from people who know what they’re doing.”

Road House is a reimgening of the 1989 action film of the same name. The remake features Jake Gyllenhaal, Daniela Melchior, and Conor McGregor in leading roles. It was released on March 8. It will be put on Prime Video on March 21.