Alex Pereira’s Foray into Hollywood ‘Villain’ Role for A24 Has Fans Worried Before UFC 320

Fans are concerned about Alex Pereira's first role as a villain in an A24 movie ahead of his UFC 320 PPV title rematch against Magomed Ankalaev.

Alex Pereira’s Foray into Hollywood ‘Villain’ Role for A24 Has Fans Worried Before UFC 320

Alex Pereira criticized after taking time off before UFC 320 PPV rematch (Source: X)

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Much was made of how Alex Pereira prepared for his pay-per-view title clash against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313, a fight where he ultimately lost his championship. The Brazilian travelled to Australia just a month before his title defense to support Sean Strickland at UFC 312. Moreover, he even stayed in the country and was seen attending concerts after the event instead of immediately heading back to the United States to train.

Now, his road back to gold at UFC 320 isn’t without its own twists. Last autumn, it was revealed that ‘Poatan’ had landed a villain role in A24’s upcoming thriller Onslaught. Over the weekend, behind-the-scenes set photos surfaced showing Pereira in full costume, tactical gear, half his face painted black for camouflage, and a butcher knife in hand.

The look, combined with his armor and trademark stone-faced demeanor, drew comparisons to the cinematic intros of Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege. The images quickly went viral, showcasing his imposing presence even outside the Octagon. Pereira is now balancing movie production with training for his UFC 320 main event on October 4 in Las Vegas, as recently announced.

While many fans are excited, others are wary of the distraction so close to fight night. Before losing his belt, the current #10 pound-for-pound ranked fighter and fastest two-division champion put together an incredible run. His streak of knockout finishes turned him into a headline fixture, culminating in three straight title defenses against Jamahal Hill, Jiri Prochazka, and Khalil Rountree Jr. in just 175 days.

However, extended time away from competition, combined with playing the role of cornerman at UFC 312 and soaking up the spotlight from his growing ‘Chama’ fame, may have hurt Pereira’s preparation. The former 205-pound kingpin did take heed of analyst warnings from Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen to focus more on his ground game. Still, his improvements in takedown defense and clinch work came a little too late to make a real difference.

Ankalaev didn’t start their title fight with overwhelming dominance, but he capitalized on key moments, landing sharp, clean shots, wobbling Pereira with a second-round left hand, and steadily outwrestling him throughout the bout. In the end, Ankalaev earned a unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) to claim the undisputed light heavyweight title.

Now, with the rematch on the horizon, some in the MMA community fear history could repeat itself if Pereira’s focus drifts away from the task at hand.

Fight fans react to Alex Pereira’s H-Town villain role before pivotal UFC 320 fight rematch

It’s the sudden year of faithful adaptation and zingy live-action roles with costumes. Think Marvel and their latest projects like The Fantastic Four or James Gunn (not, not UFC CEO Dana White-favored Zack Snyder) and his ‘Superman’, or even Netflix’s One Piece. Pereira and his down-to-the-bits realistic tactical militaristic villain are a far cry from such roles, but he can sure make a mark with it.

Fans react to Alex Pereira
Fans react to Alex Pereira (Source: X)

Given his popularity and silent stoicism, it’s one that UFC fans would even flock to. Conor McGregor‘s Road House movie – a 1989 remake – punctuated a global IMDb rating of 6.2/10, a 59% Critics, and a 55% Audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Moreover, it made $750 million in 10 days!

Kamaru Usman was in a Marvel project, and even ex-UFC HW champ Jon Jones is starring in a similar Hollywood role. Global stars and combatants starring in movies is no new thing. A-lister Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and WWE’s biggest name, Roman Reigns, have taken to their shine in their own movies as well.

Alex Pereira starring in a movie could have gone similarly and could even have the potential to turn out great, a minimalistic role or not. However, there’s the matter of his UFC 320 title fight and how he’d fare. Specifically, when Ankalaev kept dissing, he didn’t even want or prep for such a PPV title rematch, fearing the same turnout. Here is what fans think of it:

Safe to say, the responses have been less than kind all over. A prominent reaction (@MedZakariaL) retorted that Ankalaev made him switch careers. The same comment, and a few others, also mocked how, from going viral in millions, Pereira’s movie role is getting a scrap change of likes. All in all, it does not bode well for the former champ ahead of perhaps his last shot at the title.

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