Tag: dwayne johnson

The Rock not attending UFC White House event

Posted on by Joseph Currier

He was invited by Dana White, but Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson won’t be attending UFC’s upcoming event at the White House.

A recent feature story on White published by Time magazine noted that the UFC boss had invited several celebrities, including Johnson, to attend UFC Freedom 250 in Washington, D.C. Vanity Fair followed up by trying to find out if those celebrities would be attending, with a source telling them that Johnson will not be there. It wasn’t stated whether Johnson has a scheduling issue or a different reason for declining the invitation.

“A source close to The Rock tells Vanity Fair that he will not be attending,” Vanity Fair wrote. “Representatives for [Adam] Sandler, [Jared] Leto, and [Mario] Lopez say they won’t be either. Reps for the others did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The White House and UFC did not respond to requests for comment about the guest list.”

Tom Brady, Guy Ritchie, and Jason Statham were the other celebrities White mentioned as being invited to the June 14 show. UFC says there will be approximately 4,300 attendees in the crowd, including at least 1,200 active duty military members.

WWE involvement at UFC Freedom 250 weekend —

Johnson has a seat on the board of directors for TKO Group, the parent company of UFC and WWE. There will be some WWE wrestlers in Washington, D.C. that weekend with Charlotte Flair, The Miz, Trick Williams, Chelsea Green, The Usos, Tiffany Stratton, and Bron Breakker announced for meet and greets at the UFC Freedom 250 fan fest.

The fan fest is taking place at The Ellipse just outside of the White House, while UFC is staging the actual fights on the White House’s South Lawn. Here is the announced main card:

UFC Freedom 250 (Sunday, June 14 on Paramount+) —

  • Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje for the UFC lightweight championship
  • Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane for the UFC heavyweight championship
  • Sean O’Malley vs. Aiemann Zahabi
  • Josh Hokit vs. Derrick Lewis
  • Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler
  • Bo Nickal vs. Kyle Daukaus
  • Diego Lopes vs. Steve Garcia

The Rock gets pulled over after attending Hollywood event

Posted on by Josh Nason

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson didn’t exactly love authority figures during the heights of his WWE run, but ran into the real life version on Thursday.

First posted by TMZ, the global star and TKO Board member was in Hollywood to support co-star and friend Emily Blunt as she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame alongside actor Stanley Tucci.

Afterward, Johnson was pulled over by Los Angeles police for having tinted windows on his car. While tint itself isn’t illegal, certain levels and locations on the windows are. It was unclear from the report if Johnson was ticketed or got a warning.

Johnson starred alongside Blunt on “The Smashing Machine” in addition to “Jungle Cruise.”

While Johnson appeared at the event Thursday, he did not appear at this year’s WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas, flying home after CinemaCon in the city to be present for his daughter’s eighth birthday.

It was recently announced his team will be turning “Fighting With My Family” into a musical.

The Rock stars in new trailer for live-action ‘Moana’ movie

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Disney has released a new trailer for its live-action “Moana” film, which co-stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and is set to release this summer.

Johnson’s role in the original animated “Moana” is one of the most memorable performances of his acting career. He voiced Maui in both “Moana” and “Moana 2” and is now back playing the character in physical form.

The live-action adaptation is scheduled to hit theaters on July 10. Along with acting in the movie, Johnson is an executive producer with others from his Seven Bucks Productions company.

Here is Disney’s official description:

  • In ‘Moana,’ Disney’s live action reimagining of the beloved Oscar-nominated animated adventure, Moana (Catherine Lagaʻaia) answers the Ocean’s call and, for the first time, voyages beyond the reef of her island of Motunui with the infamous demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) on an unforgettable journey to restore prosperity to her people.
  • The film is directed by Emmy and Tony Award winner Thomas Kail (‘Hamilton’); produced by Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Beau Flynn, Hiram Garcia and Lin-Manuel Miranda; and executive produced by Kail, Scott Sheldon, Charles Newirth and Auliʻi Cravalho, who voiced Moana in the animated films ‘Moana’ and ‘Moana 2.’ ‘Moana’ features original songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foaʻi and Mark Mancina, and an original score composed by Mancina. Audiences can experience the brilliant cinematic sights, sounds and songs of ‘Moana’ exclusively in theaters on July 10, 2026.

Johnson earned high praise for his acting work in “The Smashing Machine” last year, earning a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of MMA legend Mark Kerr. There was even Oscar buzz, though Johnson ultimately did not end up being nominated.

Following his work on “The Smashing Machine,” Johnson is attached to upcoming projects from directors Martin Scorsese and Benny Safdie. He is also starring in the third and final movie of the rebooted “Jumanji” franchise.

It doesn’t look like Johnson will play any kind of significant role at WrestleMania 42 this year, though he’s teased potentially showing up in 2027 when WrestleMania is held in Saudi Arabia.

The Rock not among Academy Award nominees

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is still chasing his first Academy Award nomination.

Despite critical praise for his performance in The Smashing Machine, Johnson is not listed among the nominees for the 2026 Academy Awards. The five spots in the Best Actor in a Leading Role category instead went to Timothee Chalamet, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ethan Hawke, Michael B. Jordan, and Wagner Moura.

The Smashing Machine did receive one nomination, which was for Best Makeup and Hairstyling. The movie was released in October 2025 and tells the real-life story of MMA legend Mark Kerr, including his battle with addiction, road to sobriety, and relationship with his ex-wife Dawn. Johnson and Emily Blunt star in the two leading roles.

By taking on the project, Johnson wanted to expose Kerr’s story to a larger audience and provide encouragement to anyone battling similar demons. He also wanted to test his range as an actor and show he was capable of more than he’s displayed previously.

Johnson was nominated for a Golden Globe but lost out to Moura, who starred in The Secret Agent.

Upcoming roles for Johnson include Lizard Music (from Smashing Machine director Benny Safdie), as well as new projects in the Jumanji and Moana franchises.

When we’ll see Johnson on WWE programming next remains to be seen, but he recently mentioned “good” conversations regarding a possible appearance at WrestleMania 43 in Saudi Arabia next year.

Ava reacts to father The Rock’s Golden Globes loss

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson might have come up short at the Golden Globes, but that doesn’t change how proud his daughter Ava is of him.

Ava (Simone Johnson) was in attendance at Sunday night’s award ceremony where her father was nominated for his performance as Mark Kerr in “The Smashing Machine.” Out of the six nominees in the Best Actor in a Motion Picture category, Wagner Moura took home the honor for “The Secret Agent.”

“Proud is such an understatement,” Ava tweeted today. “Congratulations to all the winners & nominees #GoldenGlobes2026”

Ava — who is the on-screen general manager of WWE NXT — attended the Golden Globes with her girlfriend Tatyanna Dumas, who is signed to WWE as a prospect in the Performance Center. Dumas is originally from Australia and was a stunt performer and basketball player before joining WWE in 2024.

“An honour to stand by your side and be there for moments that are unforgettable,” Dumas responded to Ava’s tweet. “Proud of Dad, that’s for sure. The first, but not the last.”

Along with Johnson and Moura, Michael B. Jordan, Jeremy Allen White, Oscar Isaac, and Joel Edgerton were nominated in the Best Actor category. It was the first Golden Globe nomination for Johnson, who stepped outside of his comfort zone in “The Smashing Machine” to show that he’s capable of more as an actor than we’ve seen from him before.

“The Smashing Machine” was released in October 2025 and tells the story of Kerr’s MMA career, battle with addiction, and his relationship with his ex-wife Dawn.

The Rock reveals how wrestling shaped his acting career

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

From starting as The Rock in WWE to becoming one of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood, Dwayne Johnson has come a long way. Following the critical success of his film, ‘The Smashing Machine,’ Johnson appeared in an interview on the THR Actor Roundtable with Adam Sandler, Jacob Elordi, Michael B. Jordan, and more, where he revealed how his past as a wrestler shaped his acting career.

“I think performatively, yes. In wrestling, it’s very big and over the top as you’re performing for everybody for a stadium. But I think probably one of the main takeaways from wrestling was it really forced me live, and you guys know this in theater,” Johnson continued.

“It’s like it forces you, it’s almost like a forcing mechanism to listen. To really make sure that you’re really honing in on that skill set of just really listening to the audience and keeping you on your toes.”

In a career spanning over two decades, Johnson has appeared in nearly 50 films, with roles varying across full-length appearances, animations, and cameos.

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson discusses his Hollywood jump

In the same interview, Johnson also opened up about his Hollywood jump from WWE in the early 2000s.

“Well, I think it was planned by something more powerful than me, for sure. Destiny, I believe in the universe, but I also wanted to grow, and I wanted to challenge myself.“

Extremely successful and popular, Johnson recently received his first-ever Golden Globes nomination for one of the spots in the Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama) category.

Dwayne Johnson explains his Hollywood jump from WWE: ‘Got bit by the acting bug’

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

Over two decades ago, Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, switched gears from a glorious WWE career to Hollywood. Starting his career in ‘The Mummy Returns’, Johnson soon found success and started appearing in more famous projects. Currently, one of the highest-paid actors in the industry, Johnson recently opened up about his jump from wrestling to Hollywood while speaking at the THR Actor Roundtable.

When asked about his pivot toward acting from a WWE career, Johnson responded and claimed that he wanted to embrace the “challenge.”

“Well, I think it was planned by something more powerful than me, for sure. Destiny, I believe in the universe, but I also wanted to grow, and I wanted to challenge myself.“

“My first acting gig was The Mummy Returns with Brendan Fraser. We were shooting in Morocco in the Sahara Desert, and I was so sick cause I went over there, and I probably ate something I shouldn’t have eaten. So, I caught that thing, and it’s 110°. I’m freezing. I’m wearing a blanket,” Johnson continued.

“Stephen Sommers comes over, the director, ‘Hey, you okay?’ I’m like, ‘yeah, I’m okay. Let’s do it.’ He calls action. We have our scene. And I had never acted before, but he called action. And when he says cut, you know, we hear the ‘Oh, you got bit by the acting bug, the thing that happens.’ When he yelled cut, I went, ‘This is what I want to do for the rest of my life.'”

Since 2001, Johnson has starred in nearly 50 feature films in roles varying across cameos, full-length appearances and animated appearances. His latest venture was the critically acclaimed ‘Smashing Machine’ directed by Benny Safdie, and a brief voice role in Zootopia 2.

The Rock reacts to Golden Globe nomination

Posted on by Joseph Currier

For Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, being nominated for a Golden Globe is proof that great things can happen when you step out of your comfort zone and take a risk.

It was revealed this morning that Johnson has received his first-ever Golden Globes nomination, taking one of the spots in the Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama) category. He received the honor for his role playing MMA legend Mark Kerr in “The Smashing Machine” from A24 Films.

Along with showcasing Kerr’s story, taking on this role was about Johnson attempting to show he’s capable of more than the roles he’s often been pigeonholed into. He spoke to the Hollywood Reporter about what this award recognition means to him.

“A few things. One of them is the importance of listening to the little voice that sits behind your rib cage, that at times whispers to you, and at times pounds on your chest to say that you can do more, and there is more, and it can be scary,” Johnson said. “And it might be scary because it will require you to step out of a comfort zone. And when things are good, you don’t want to step out of that zone, because it’s going good.

“But there was more: I wanted to really push and challenge myself and chase that challenge. I had something very special to me, which was the story.”

Johnson added that, given Kerr’s inspirational story of overcoming addiction, he also views this nomination as a nod to everyone who has had to fight through difficult things in life.

“On top of that, I think the nomination represents the fight in everybody, especially with addictions and those demons that you battle,” Johnson said. “Mark Kerr had it all and lost everything, and then has since become sober. He did overdose twice. Life is good because he’s sober and because he made it. Not everyone is that lucky. That’s the movie that we wanted to make: a nod to those who fight.

“But last week, I thought, ‘Let me take a tally here.’ Over the last years, I’ve lost 15 friends who are all wrestlers and fighters to addiction. Some OD’d, some decided to check out. Life was too hard. It shook me, and then it restabilized me in a way like, ‘Okay, I’m so happy we made this film.’ It is a love letter to those that I just talked to you about. That’s why this nomination means so much.”

Johnson’s co-star in “The Smashing Machine,” Emily Blunt, earned a Golden Globe nomination for her performance as well. The film is from director Benny Safdie, who Johnson is already set to work with again.

Production began last month on the third and final installment of the rebooted “Jumanji” franchise that Johnson stars in.


‘The Smashing Machine’ earns two Golden Globe nominations

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: A24

While Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s film ‘The Smashing Machine’ didn’t knock out the box office this year, it did garner two cast members with awards nominations.

Announced on Monday morning, both Johnson and co-star Emily Blunt earned Golden Globe nominations for Best Male Actor in a motion picture drama and Best Supporting Female Actor in a motion picture, respectively.

The awards ceremony is set for January 11, 2026.

In the A24 film, Johnson played former UFC/MMA star Mark Kerr in the biopic with Blunt playing his girlfriend, Dawn Staples.

Released in October, the film did just over $21 million at the box office worldwide which was seen as a disappointment. Johnson — something Johnson claimed he never thought about at all.

Johnson’s usual busy slate will continue as the live action ‘Moana’ for Disney is in post-production while he is currently filming ‘Jumanji 3.’ Pre-production projects include an untitled film by Martin Scorcese, ‘Fast X: Part 2’, ‘The King’, and ‘Lizard Music’ among others.

The TKO Board members hasn’t appeared on WWE TV since earlier this year, but always could be a surprise guest at John Cena’s final match this Saturday in Washington, DC.

The Rock says he never thought about box office performance for ‘The Smashing Machine’

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: A24

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson isn’t that concerned with the less-than-stellar box office performance of ‘The Smashing Machine’ and never was to begin with.

Speaking on a podcast for The Hollywood Reporter recorded for 500 film students at Chapman University, Johnson talked about why he wanted to do the movie and included a line about the box office performance for his biopic on former MMA/UFC fighter Mark Kerr based on the 2002 documentary of the same name.

“Smashing Machine also represents a turning point in my career that I’ve wanted for a long time. For the first time in my career…I made a film to challenge myself and to really rip myself open and to go elsewhere and disappear and transform and not one time did I think about box office,” he said.

Despite critical praise, the movie barely surpassed $20 million ($11.3 million domestic/$8.8 million international), the lowest-ever of any Johnson-led film.

He talked about how in Hollywood, the normal tendency is to be concerned about that and how sometimes, you wake up on a Saturday and feel good about things or sometimes you don’t. With this movie, “I had not thought about that at all.”

“And even that Friday night when we opened, I went to sleep peacefully and woke up peacefully because it represented this thing. And even though we didn’t do well (at the box office) or as well as we wanted to, it was okay because it just represented the thing I did for me,” he said, saying it did represent doing something he loves to do in telling stories and that the movie gave him an opportunity to have a place to put a lot of things he experienced growing up.

Johnson remains proud of the movie and that it completely changed my life in ways that I didn’t anticipate, because of what it represents. It represents, for me, listening to your gut, to your instinct, to that little voice. Sometimes in life, you think you’re capable of something, but you don’t quite know. And sometimes it takes people around you to go, ‘Come on, you could do this.’”

A streaming home and home availability date has not yet been announced.

The Rock describes difficult transformation for ‘The Smashing Machine’ role

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson stopped by “The Tonight Show” last night to promote his new movie.

“The Smashing Machine” — with Johnson playing the lead role of MMA legend Mark Kerr — will be released in theaters this Friday (October 3). Johnson has received praise, and even potential Oscar buzz, for his performance. He told Jimmy Fallon that the role required him to transform in a variety of different ways to play the muscular but soft-spoken Kerr.

“We had a physical transformation, and certainly an emotional transformation, and a vocal transformation too as well.”

“It was about 22 prosthetics,” Johnson said. “I had to put on just over 30 pounds of muscle. Which, by the way, what you realize is — you know how you have some actors who say, ‘Hey, I had to put on weight. I went to McDonald’s every day.’ Mark Kerr had just this quality of muscle, like fast-twitch quality of muscle — because he was a [freestyle] wrestler. And I had to still put on this weight, still be able to move like an MMA fighter.”

Johnson described the conversation where director Benny Safdie told him that he’d need to add muscle for the role.

“He said to me, ‘Hey DJ, I don’t know how to tell you this and I don’t know if you’ve ever heard this.’ He goes, ‘You’re going to have to get bigger.’ And I go, ‘Okay, here we go,'” Johnson said.

Now, Johnson has gone in the opposite direction and slimmed down for his next project with Safdie. Johnson will star in the movie “Lizard Music,” playing a man in his 70s whose best friend is a chicken.

Johnson’s full “Tonight Show” appearance can be watched below:

JNPO: ‘The Smashing Machine’ review & a talk with Bas Rutten

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: A24/Eric Zachanowich

First announced two years ago, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s biopic on MMA legend Mark Kerr — The Smashing Machine — finally hits theaters this Friday.

After seeing a screening of the movie last week, Josh Nason gives you his full spoiler-free thoughts on the performances by Johnson, Emily Blunt and Ryan Bader. He also talks about whether this is a potential Oscar winner and movie critic culture he observed while in the theatre.

Then, Josh talks with one of the stars of the film: the one and only Bas Rutten. The former UFC and Pancrase champion turned broadcaster talks about his involvement in the film, whether it was difficult to go back to that time in his life, and his interactions with Johnson and Blunt.

Once you watch the movie, let Josh know what you think on X or BlueSky.

Click here to listen for free or stream for free on both Spotify or Apple Podcasts (search Wrestling Observer).

The Rock ‘so proud’ of daughter Ava for carving own path in WWE

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is so proud of how is daughter Ava has managed to follow in his footsteps while simultaneously carving out her own path.

With Ava standing beside him, Johnson got emotional while speaking to MTV UK about his daughter’s WWE career. It means a lot to have Ava in the family business, but Johnson is especially proud that she has never once asked him to use his influence to help her get ahead.

“I am so proud of her. Because it’s what I did, you know? And I love what I did. And I love wrestling, I grew up in wrestling. She was born into it too, just like I was. And when she said, ‘Hey, I want to do what you do.’ But the difference is — it’s why I get emotional — because she’s like, ‘I want to do what you do, but I want to carve my own path.’ And that’s the difference,” Johnson said. “That was a big deal when I heard that.

“Because it’s easy, I think, for any kid who wants to come up and do what their parents are doing to — maybe it’s not overt, but to utilize the influence. I’m telling you, it never happened. I never got that call. Like, ‘Hey, can you call someone?’ I never got that call, and that’s the truth. And that’s the thing that makes me proud. When you don’t get that call — look, I would have been there anyway, I would have made that call. But when you don’t get it, it gave me a profound sense of pride, because, oh, I helped, with her mom, raise an amazing human being.”

Ava (Simone Johnson) first joined the WWE Performance Center in 2020. Performing in the ring was her initial path, but she’s since transitioned into a different role as the on-screen general manager of NXT. She was not present on this week’s episode due to being in Europe, where her father is promoting his upcoming movie “The Smashing Machine” — a biopic on MMA legend Mark Kerr that is set to be released in theaters on October 3.

Details on negotiations for megastar to be part of WWE WrestleMania in Saudi Arabia

Posted on by Josh Nason

With the impending announcement of WWE WrestleMania heading to Saudi Arabia for the first time ever in 2027 comes speculation of who could be part of the show given the large price tag TKO is getting for bringing it there.

Enter TKO Board member Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

In this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported that those close to the Saudi Arabia General Entertainment Authority both confirmed the WrestleMania deal is official and “they claimed negotiations for Dwayne Johnson were advancing and they believed the deal was close to being finalized.”

While yet unconfirmed with anyone from WWE, “The impression is that the final payment number for the show will be affected by whether or not they get The Rock in the main event. The idea is that the individual payoff for Johnson would be multiple times that of any pro wrestler for any event in history.”

WWE is reportedly set to receive more than $100 million for the weekend of events.

The goal from the Saudi perspective seems to be either the 54-year-old Johnson vs. Cody Rhodes or Roman Reigns.

The official announcement is expected to take place in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon.

That isn’t the only major star WWE is trying to recruit for the event. Read this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter for more.

The Rock explains ‘fowl’ reason for dramatic weight loss

Posted on by Josh Nason

Former WWE star and TKO Board member Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson shocked fans last week while at the Venice Film Festival with an extremely slimmed down look, causing chatter as to why that might be.

While at the Toronto Film Festival Monday, Johnson revealed the reason: a unique film role in which he will play Chicken Man — “a whimsical, eccentric 70-something year-old” that befriends a chicken — in Lizard Music.

The film will be directed by Benny Safdie who also directed Johnson in the upcoming The Smashing Machine that is currently doing the festival rounds and getting rave reviews. Johnson said Safdie pitched him for 45 minutes on the role and then said to the director that “I am your Chicken Man.”

According to Variety, the movie is “an adaptation of a Daniel Pinkwater novel and tells the story of a septuagenarian whose best friend is a 70-year-old chicken.”

Johnson said he has lost “much of the 30 pounds of muscle” he gained while preparing to play Mark Kerr, the MMA fighter which Machine is based on. While it wasn’t specified when Lizard Music will begin filming, he and Kevin Hart will team up for Jumanji 3 to begin shooting in November.

The Smashing Machine bows in theaters on Friday, October 3.