From the very first trailer, wrestling fans knew Cash Flo would play a major part in the Netflix documentary Wrestlers. The majority of OVW fans can recite his remarks by heart, describing OVW as “the little engine that could,” and crediting Al Snow as the man behind their success.
When the documentary dropped in September of 2023, Cash Flo had plenty of moments in the spotlight. Greg Whitely’s cameras followed Cash to the gym, to the spray tan booth, and even his own living room. We saw him get a chance to work a televised match for AEW. We met his family and heard how hard they have all sacrificed so Mike Walden could live out his wrestling dream.
Cash Flo did not need Netflix to put him over at OVW. He was already one of their most popular stars. Prior to that, he made a name for himself at IWA Mid-South, the legendary hardcore promotion that called Louisville home before OVW.
“When you do what I do, you sign on to be recognized by people when you’re out in public,” said Cash. “It was very apparent to me after Netflix came on that a lot of people watched it, especially in Louisville.”
Wrestlers drew praise from people far away from Louisville. Celebrities like Ken Jeong and Rainn Wilson were both fans and expressed their love on social media. But Cash never dreamed that he would catch the eye of one of the biggest stars in Hollywood history.
Like many OVW stars, Cash saw an increase in bookings from the wrestling business. He was also prepared for any opportunities that might come from outside wrestling. “Al Snow has a saying about not seeing the forest for the trees,” said Cash. “My wife Angela is kind of my business manager, and she has that kind of vision. She said, ‘You’re going to get a lot of screen time in this documentary. Why don’t you sign with a casting agent?’ So I looked around and signed with one.”
Almost six months after the Netflix premiere, that casting agent sent Cash Flo an email about an audition for a TV show. “All I knew at that time was I would have some screen time, it was a certain number of episodes, and they wanted a certain look. They never said the name of the show, but when they emailed me the sides for the audition, I put two and two together.”
Tulsa King premiered in 2022 on Paramount Plus. The series stars Sylvester Stallone as Dwight Manfredi, a gangster who is released from prison and shipped off to Oklahoma. Cash watched the first season, and he knew walking into the audition how much it could change his life.
“They told me I did well, and they gave me the dates when they would need me to start if I got the part,” said Cash. “Three weeks went by, and I didn’t hear anything. Two days before the starting date, I made a call, just so I could know for sure and start taking bookings. They called me back next day and said yes, I got the role. I had to be in Atlanta at 6 a.m. the very next morning.”
Cash had no time to waste. He had to pack a bag and book a flight. But his agent told him if he got a call from an unknown number, he needed to pick up. Twenty minutes later, a California number appeared on his cell phone.
“It was Sly,” said Cash. “I started out calling him Mr. Stallone, but he told me right away, ‘No, no. It’s Sly.’ He told me he and his wife binge watched the Netflix show, and he really wanted me to be a part of his crew on Tulsa King. He was like, ‘You would be perfect for this part. I need somebody that looks exactly like you can do what you can do. You’re a star.’ All these things I’m just not used to hearing from people!”
Stallone let Cash know he had personally stuck his neck out for the pro wrestler. Some of the producers were not sold on using an inexperienced actor on the show. Stallone, of course, had previous experience casting wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan and Terry Funk. He told his producers Cash Flo was more camera-ready than Funk or Hogan, and he told Cash the same.
“You’re going to knock it out of the park,” Stallone told Cash Flo.
Stallone cast Cash Flo as Bigfoot, the cousin of Garrett Hedlund’s character Mitch Keller. Like Cash Flo, Bigfoot hails from Kentucky, and he prefers the nickname Bigfoot to his given name Michael. The Manfredi family already boasted a colorful collection of characters, but Bigfoot gave the group some muscle, along with an added dose of Southern, dry wit.
To quote Bigfoot himself, “I simply try to understand people who are very rude before I smash their heads.”
Cash felt the jitters his first day on set. Years of live television production prepared Cash for that moment, but it was evident to everyone on set he was feeling some nerves that day.
“The first thing I had to film was a monologue,” said Cash. “After we finished filming that scene, Sly asked me to come to his trailer. We sat down for about three hours and just talked. I knew he was just trying to put me at ease, and help me feel comfortable. We went back out and shot a few more scenes, and after we finished, Sly asked of we could go back and redo the monologue. He didn’t have to do that, but he wants everything to be the best it can be.”
Stallone had faith in Cash Flo right from the start, and the cast, crew, producers, and writers quickly became believers. The scripts for each episode were constantly being revised, and Cash’s few episodes quickly grew into a full season.
Cash knew Stallone was becoming very comfortable with him when he started ad-libbing. “I think he wanted to see if i would respond, or if I’d jump back and hide from the camera. There are a lot of scenes throughout the series that are ad-libbed. A lot of my scenes with Sly, we were ad-libbing. That moment when he asked if I liked egg whites? That was an ad-lib.”
The production of Tulsa King, Season Two, took place mostly at Eagle Rock Studio in Atlanta, Georgia. Some location shooting took place in the Atlanta as well as Tulsa, Oklahoma. The cast and crew made the new guy feel very welcome, and Cash felt right at home hanging out with castmates including Max Casella, Garrett Hedlund, Jay Will, and Martin Starr.
“Everybody is cordial. When we’re done filming, we’ll meet up at somebody’s hotel and have drinks. When we’re waiting on set we all sit in the tent talking. I know it’s cliched to talk about feeling like family, but that it’s kind of the way it is. They all go out of their way to make you feel comfortable.”
Season two of Tulsa King introduced several new villains, including Neal McDonough’s Cal Thresher and Frank Grillo’s Bill Bevilaqua. “Frank is really fun to work with,” said Cash Flo. “He has a lot of energy. Neal is great too. He’s a lot like the characters he plays, but he can be so sinister on camera.”
Cash felt an instant connection with the stunt crew on Tulsa King, who appreciated his tenacity as well as his skill. “At first, the stunt coordinators would be like, ‘Are you sure you understand this? Are you sure you’re not going to hurt yourself?’ I explained what I’ve done the last 30 years of my life, and they’d see what I could do and say, ‘Oh wow, that’s amazing.’ Then they got to the point where they were asking, ‘What do you think of this?’ That was a pretty good feeling, you know, because those guys do that for a living.”
As for Stallone, Cash Flo says what you see on camera is pretty much the man he’s come to call a friend. “He doesn’t disguise anything. On the phone, he just sounds like Dwight Manfredi. That is who he is. He’s great to work with. He’s a good mentor. He knows what he wants as an executive producer, and everyone knows what his expectations are.
“He’s a lot like Al Snow in that regard. To be doing their passion that they’ve done for so long and have the same drive and energy and commitment, it’s something to strive for.”
Cash was especially surprised how many treated him like a celebrity, proof positive that pro wrestling fans are everywhere. “Martin Starr has a nephew who is a big wrestling fan. He asked he if we could make a video for him as a birthday gift.”
Bigfoot, and Mike Walden, received high praise when season two of Tulsa King aired in the fall of 2024. Writing for Screenrant, Sean Morrison declared Bigfoot to be one of the best new characters on the show. “Bigfoot has been a quiet but constant presence on the show. Whether it’s protecting Dwight and his family, ambushing would-be assassins, or cleaning up the egg whites that Dwight doesn’t want to eat, Bigfoot has made himself a huge asset to the gang.”
“His charming personality is a great juxtaposition to his size,” wrote Billy Fellows on Collider who later added, “The mere glint in his eyes fills you with some kind of gleeful energy that is accompanied by the fear of having your head squished.”
Cash is grateful for the opportunity he’s been given, and humble as ever. “I’m proud of myself. I went off the deep end and learned to swim.”
Just as Netflix opened the door for Tulsa King, Bigfoot opened a few more. Cash Flo has a few movies lined up, as well as a third season of Tulsa King. He’s excited to do more acting, but he’s not near ready to hang up his boots. In the fall of 2024, right as Tulsa King, season two, was airing in Paramount Plus, Cash Flo returned to OVW.
“It never even entered my mind that I would not come back to OVW,” says Cash Flo. “I’m still the same person now that I was before. I want to make a living at OVW, and doing other stuff. If this other thing gets busier, it might be few and far between, but it would be irresponsible and quite frankly stupid for me not to take advantage of both, for me and for my family.”
The combined power of Tulsa King, OVW, and Wrestlers continues to open doors for Cash Flo. “I’m going to Wrestlecade. I’ve been trying to get on Wrestlecade for years. Now they’re the ones calling me. Same thing for Squared Circle Expo in Indianapolis.”
He’s also getting inquiries from TV and movie conventions. Tulsa King fans love Bigfoot, and they’re excited to see more of Dwight Manfredi’s muscle in season three. Cash is thrilled to have both acting and wrestling as a means to provide for his family.
“Stallone told me the first time I talked to him, ‘This is probably going to change your life.’ It pretty much has. It’s kind of taking a different trajectory. My perspective has changed on a lot of things. Just being able to have some security for my family is a big thing.”
It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. And I’m not just saying that because he can smash my head.
RELATED LINKS
- Oct. 4, 2023: Cash Flo releases new set of wrestling cards
- Oct. 21, 2022: Cash Flo is King: Veteran strikes double gold in OVW
- Cash Flo socials: Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * YouTube
