Millionaire Oscar Winning Actor Dustin Hoffman Once Warned Kobe Bryant Against Massive Career Decision

It is a well-known fact that Kobe Bryant has a massive following worldwide. LeBron James once said that if anyone thinks they are popular, they should see Kobe Bryant in China.

Unsurprisingly, Kobe Bryant is very popular amongst Hollywood celebrities as well. Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, Chris Rock, Drake, and Jimmy Kimmel have all expressed their admiration for the ‘Black Mamba’.

In a resurfaced video, a reporter was seen asking Hoffman about honoring Kobe and a potential career in Hollywood.

Dustin Hoffman shares his opinion on Kobe Bryant as an actor

The late Kobe Bryant had millions of fans. Dustin Hoffman was one of them. In an interview with TMZ, Hoffman talked about his favorite player and a potential Hollywood career.

When asked how should the city celebrate Kobe’s legacy, Hoffman told the reporter “They should have a Kobe Bryant Boulevard”

This video was shared by TMZ and was recorded prior to Kobe’s demise. Since then, the City of Los Angeles has rightly dedicated several places to Kobe. The street outside the Staples Centre has now been named after the legend. Hoffman’s idea came to fruition. Unfortunately, it was only after the Los Angeles Lakers legend’s untimely demise.

When asked about a potential career in Hollywood, Hoffman suggested “He [Kobe] can do better than that”.

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In 2010, Hoffman attended the Lakers’ Western Conference Game 1 where Kobe scored 40 points. It is surreal that Hoffman predicted the Kobe Bryant Boulevard years before his tragic passing.

Would Kobe have been a great actor?

Well, Kobe Bryant would have probably been at the top of the mountain at anything he did. Kobe briefly appeared on ABC’s ‘Modern Family’ where he played himself.

He has done several cameos, commercials, and endorsements where he brings out his acting skills. Kobe Bryant has appeared in tv shows and movies such as ‘Daddy’s Home’, ‘All That’, ‘In the House’, ‘Arliss’, ‘Modern Family’, and ‘Hang Time’.

Hoffman was asked if Kobe wanted to work with him and would he be potentially interested. He was quite cryptic and vague throughout the interview as the questions were hypothetical in nature.

To this, Hoffman replied, ” I’d talk him out of it.”

Needless to say, Kobe fulfilled his Hollywood ambitions with his Oscar-winning short film ‘Dear Basketball.’ He achieved another milestone in 2018 when he became the first athlete ever to win both an Academy Award and a basketball title.

WATCH THIS STORY: Lakers Legend Kobe Bryant’s Childhood Home: Where Did He Grow Up?

His short film was based on a poem he composed. The Oscar-winning project was about him as a young child dreaming of being a basketball player.

Kobe has always set out to achieve the unthinkable. When Kobe was a youngster, nobody thought he was prepared to be in the NBA.

He proved everyone wrong by taking the Lakers to several Championships. He even became an Oscar-winning producer when no one expected him to.