By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

MTV's website picked up the story of Cryme Tyme member Shad Gaspard auditioning for a leading role in the upcoming "Conan" action/adventure movie.

Shad posted an update over the weekend on being in the final round of contention for the leading heel role as Ukafa.

"This role is as important to me as playing The Scorpion King in 'The Mummy Returns' was for Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson," Shad said on his MySpace page.

Shad urged fans to let the producers of the movie know that "Shad Gaspard is the man when it comes to kicking ass and taking names on the big screen."

MTV surmised: "Standing at 6'7" and weighing in at 285 pounds, Gaspard unquestionably exceeds the physical requirement for playing Ukafa — whether or not he has the acting chops to back up his brawn is another story altogether."

Caldwell's Analysis: A popularity contest will certainly help Shad build some momentum for possibly getting the role, but I haven't seen any audition tapes to know if he "has the acting chops," as MTV put it. Vince McMahon has reportedly been working with the younger wrestlers on their acting for WWE TV with informal "acting classes," according to Ted DiBiase in this interview. That could be a good thing or a bad thing, though.

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