top wealthiest pro wrestlers of all time

Mainstream wrestling fans were first introduced toKevin Nashduring his days as Diesel in the World Wrestling Federation. Nash cashed in on a big payday when he and friendScott Halljoined World Championship Wrestling in 1996, and the man known as Big Sexy and Big Daddy Cool has also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. Outside of wrestling, Nash has had multiple movie roles that have also netted him some impressive amounts of cash. Those heading out to theaters in the summer of 2015 can see Nash perform in the filmMagic Mike XXL.

Any wrestler who becomes a household name capable of featuring in television shows and movies owesHulk Hoganall of the credit. Hogan revolutionized the wrestling industry in the 1980s and 1990s, laying down the path for future performers to make significant amounts of money outside of the business. Along with the wealth that he earned working for companies such as the WWF and WCW, Hogan was also the star of his own television show and of several movies. A public divorce along with life decisions and other occurrences have depleted some of the wealth had by Hogan, but the Hulkster is still doing alright for himself.

The man who is often credited for helping make Lucha Libre style wrestling a massive hit in the United States in the 1990s has been at it for decades.Rey Mysteriostarted out in Triple A before getting noticed in Extreme Championship Wrestling. World Championship Wrestling then came calling in 1996, and feuds with the likes of Dean Malenko, Psicosis and Ultimo Dragon helped make Rey Jr. a star. His best runs of his singles career came in the WWE, where he won the World Heavyweight Championship and the WWE Championship. Mysterio and the WWE parted ways earlier this year, but he is still working for several promotions.

Injuries coupled with some unfortunate behindthescenes incidents seemed to threaten the WWE career of Randy Orton over a decade ago, but the former Legend Killer got his act together and evolved into one of the more consistent workers in the company. Orton has been a part of Evolution, RatedRKO and The Legacy, but it is as a singles competitor where the man now known as The Viper has had the most success. He may not be in the main event picture as of the summer of 2015, but Orton is still making good money for himself in WWE.

Those who have followed the life and times of John Bradshaw Layfield watched his character change from a cowboyesque fighter to a Wall Street mogul who could also get the job done inside of the ring. Along with wrestling, Layfield has worked as an analyst for FOX News Channel. He has also launched his own company. Is days as an active wrestler have been over for some time, but WWE fans can still see JBL on a weekly basis. He works as a color commentator for the Raw program, and Layfield has also been featured in shows on the WWE Network.

The WWE chose to let art imitate life regarding David Otunga, explaining his actual background to fans from his first days on the originalNXTshow. Otunga graduated from Harvard Law School, he has been asuccessfulpracticing attorney, and he has been featured on weekly WWE shows. It also does not hurt his overall wealth that Otunga happens to be married to actress and pop singerJennifer Hudson. He will likely never feature in a WWE main event or win the companys top championship, but Otunga should nevertheless be living the good life for decades to come.

As much money asJeff Hardyhas made inside and outside of the pro wrestling industry, the truth of the matter is that he should have even more wealth. Hardys battles with personal demons cost him multiple runs in the WWE even at times when he proved that he could be arguably the top babyface in all of the company. While he has done well to earn contracts from TNA Wrestling in the past, that promotion was never capable of making him as rich as he could have been had he been able to remain underneath the WWE umbrella up through at least 2015.

To think that there was once a time where the majority of WCW fans knewEric Bischoffonly as a television commentator. The man who was largely responsible for firing the opening shots of the Monday Night Wars was the Executive Producer of WCW television back in the 1990s, and he would become a heel authority figure who did occasionally step inside of the ring for matches. Bischoff worked as an onair character for WWE following the demise of WCW, he has had gigs in other wrestling companies such as TNA Wrestling, and he has also authored an autobiography.

Dave Batista got his first big break in the wrestling industry as part of the Evolution heel faction that included Ric Flair, Randy Orton and Triple H. Batista would ultimately become one of the hottest acts in the company working as a babyface and feuding against Triple H, but he also proved that he was capable of being one of the best heels in the business during his time with the company. Whether or not he will ever return to the WWE is unknown, largely because he has found much success in Hollywood. Get used to seeing Batista performing on the big screen.

Those running WCW got the majority of bigtime decisions wrong following the initial days of the New World Order angle.Bill Goldbergwas, for a time, not one of those miscues. The company did well to push Goldberg as the hottest babyface in all of WCW, and his victory overHulk Hoganduring an edition ofMonday Nitroremains one of the mostmemorable moments to ever occur during the Monday Night Wars. Goldberg made what was a brief return to the ring inJune of 2015, taking it to Big Poppa Pump Scott Steiner at an independent show. And some say you cannot go back in time.