Tag: The Rock

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 recalls emotional final conversation with father, Rocky Johnson

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

Around a week ago, while appearing on the Artist Friendly with Joel Madden podcast, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson recalled his emotional final conversation with his father, Rocky Johnson. The Rock never shared a very close bond with his father, yet he regrets how their final conversation went.

Discussing their relationship, Johnson reflected on the tough love his father showed him before narrating their strenuous bond and last moments.

“We got into this huge fight Christmas 2019. It was awful. One of the biggest fights we ever got into about some just some stupid [stuff],” Johnson added. “And then about a month later, he passed away. And we weren’t talking.”

The father-son complicated relationship was also brought to life on screen in NBC’s Young Rock series.

Rocky Johnson was the first African American WWF World Tag Team Champion and was inducted into the 2008 class of WWE Hall of Fame by his son before WrestleMania 24.

Johnson died on January 15, 2020, at the age of 75 due to a pulmonary embolism. It was caused by a blood clot that traveled from a deep vein thrombosis in his leg. The Hall of Famer died at his Lutz, Florida home, purchased by his son.

WOR: Cena finish, WWE in 2026, C2 predictions

Posted on by Garrett Gonzales

Dave Meltzer and I are back with the Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, talking about the big news from today’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Here were some of the things we discussed:

  • The fallout of the finish to John Cena vs. Gunther
  • John Cena and Cody Rhodes talking about the heel turn
  • WWE in 2026
  • Wrestle Kingdom 20 card
  • AEW C2 predictions

Click here to listen (sub needed) or watch on YouTube

John Cena addresses The Rock and Travis Scott’s WWE disappearance

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

Cody Rhodes and John Cena have finally opened up about their thoughts on The Rock and Travis Scott’s disappearance following WWE Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 41.

Rhodes and Cena have addressed the sudden disappearance of The Rock and Travis Scott from WWE storylines following Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 41, with the veteran revealing that neither he nor Rhodes dwelled on what could have been once the alliance was dropped. During Cena’s recent appearance on Rhodes’ What Do You Wanna Talk About? podcast, the duo reacted to it.

Speaking about the abandoned storyline, the 17-time World Champion explained that once the promotion lost access to The Rock and Scott, their focus immediately shifted to moving forward rather than speculating on missed possibilities.

“Hey, you have The Rock and Travis Scott.’ Awesome, we can plan all this stuff. ‘Hey, you don’t have those two guys anymore,’” Cena added. “Not once did you and I, the whole world has had the conversation of, ‘What would it have been like if?’ The two guys in it, with their d**k in the dirt, not once had a conversation about, ‘Man, what would it have been like if we had those guys?’ No. It was, ‘What do we do now?”

At Elimination Chamber, Cena joined forces with The Rock and Travis Scott to turn heel on Rhodes. The shocking moment led to one of the most talked-about storylines of the year, with Cena taking help from Scott at WrestleMania 41 to win his 17th World Championship. However, soon after that, the alliance storyline was dropped with both The Rock and Scott disappearing from the promotion.

Despite Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Scott missing from the promotion, Cena continued his run as a heel and participated in several highly-anticipated matches.

John Cena responds to fans criticizing his retirement run due to The Rock and Travis Scott’s absence

In the same interview, Cena also responded to the fans criticizing his retirement run due to The Rock and Scott’s absence.

“Lets walk down hypothetical street. Let’s say everyone who showed up at the Chamber is active until August. That robs us of John Cena, Randy Orton, that robs us of John Cena, CM Punk, John Cena, Ron Cena, John Cena, AJ Styles, John Cena, Logan Paul, me, and you for the last one.”

He further claimed, “So yes, the story that might have been might have had star power, and gravity, and who knows what, but what we got by just being like ‘these are the pieces left’. What we got, for me personally, was beautiful.”

Following a year of several iconic matches, Cena finally retired against Gunther on the December 13th edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Seth Rollins reveals surprising gift from The Rock after WWE WrestleMania 40

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

Seth Rollins has revealed that The Rock sent him a large quantity of ice cream and chocolate as a surprising gift following the injury he suffered after WrestleMania 40.

Rollins competed on both nights of WrestleMania 40, closing night one in a tag match alongside Cody Rhodes against Roman Reigns and The Rock, before opening night two against Drew McIntyre. Unfortunately, after the event, Rollins suffered an injury.

Recently, speaking on Games With Names, Rollins praised The Rock and discussed their relationship, noting the gesture he received during his recovery. Speaking about their relationship, Rollins opened up about the ice cream and chocolates he received.

“What a guy. I’m friends with DJ [Dwayne Johnson] now,” Rollins added. “He sent me, when I got hurt after WrestleMania 40, he sent me like a giant, so much ice cream and chocolate. We still have pints in the back fridge because there’s so much to go through.”

Rollins further added that he has developed a friendship with Johnson, whom he described as a “big cheat day guy.”

Rollins is currently sidelined with a shoulder injury, which he suffered against Rhodes during their Crown Jewel 2025 match in Australia. There is currently no timetable for his return.

The Rock congratulates John Cena ahead of final match

Posted on by Bryan Rose

The Rock is paying tribute to John Cena ahead of Saturday Night’s Main Event.

On social media, The Rock took time to pay tribute to the 17-time World Champion, who is set to wrestle his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event against Gunther. The Rock took time to thank Cena for his contributions to professional wrestling.

“I feel like you and I have this wild and crazy history and yes, we have spilled blood together in our matches, we have literally torn tendons, literally, in our matches, we’ve broken records. And man, that has been incredible,” he said. “And I’ll always be proud of what you and I were able to accomplish together as a team along with the rest of the rosters back during those days and it was awesome. That was rare air that we were able to breathe and I will always be grateful for that.”

The Rock also took time to call John Cena a good person, saying as you go on with life, you realize how important that is.

“It’s nice to be important, but more important to be nice,” he said. “You epitomize that quote.”

Rock and Cena feuded in the early 2010s, headlining WrestleMania XXVIII in 2012. The Rock won that year, but Cena won the following year in a rematch. Earlier this year, the two shockingly joined forces when Cena turned heel, attacking Cody Rhodes. However, the alliance never went anywhere in storyline and by SummerSlam, Cena became a babyface once more.

John Cena ‘learned excellence’ from The Rock in WWE

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

John Cena has reflected on the invaluable lessons he gained from working with The Rock.

Cena revealed that he “learned absolute excellence” from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson during a recent WWE interview with Tom Rinaldi. Speaking about his experiences facing and working with Johnson, Cena described the lessons he gained from the former champion.

“I learned excellence. Absolute excellence. I learned what a good golf shot feels like when you go out and make 60 of them and hand in your scorecard,” Cena added. “That’s what I learned. I learned the noise every time. Even in your heart of hearts, maybe he thought he could have given more, the noise is still there. There is not a moment we shared without the noise. That is very rare when you’re paired with somebody that you always have that. There is usually some dead air. Not with him.”

Cena and The Rock faced each other twice in the ring, at WrestleMania 28 and WrestleMania 29, with both men scoring one victory each.

Both Cena and Rock are two of the biggest stars in the sports entertainment business. Their bond was highlighted when Cena turned heel on Cody Rhodes at Elimination Chamber 2025 with The Rock by his side.

The 48-year-old is now set to hang up his boots when he faces Gunther for the final time on December 13th, 2025, at Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Triple H congratulates The Rock on Golden Globe nomination

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Triple H praised The Rock following his Golden Globe nomination.

On Raw, the announcers took time to congratulate The Rock, who was nominated for Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama) for his role as MMA fighter Mark Kerr in ‘The Smashing Machine.’ On social media, Triple H reposted WWE’s congratulations and offered his own.

“Want to extend my congratulations on behalf of the entire @WWE family to @TheRock on his @goldenglobes nomination for The Smashing Machine. I know that he gave his all to this role and the performance on screen showed it. Today’s announcement is a recognition of that hard work,” Triple H said.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, The Rock explained what the nomination means to him and what it represents, saying he feels it’s a nod to people who have fought for things in their life.

“On top of that, I think the nomination represents the fight in everybody, especially with addictions and those demons that you battle,” he 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.”

Emily Blunt, The Rock’s co-star, also got a nomination for her performance in the movie.

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.

JNPO: April 2025 wrestling year in review – The Rock skips WrestleMania, another frustrating AEW PPV main event finish

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: AEW

On a new Josh Nason’s Punch-Out, the best pro wrestling year in review podcast series from here to there continues with a stop in April 2025.

Returning for an earlier than usual appearance on the series is Rich Kraetsch of Voices of Wrestling and also of the new dad club.

There’s a lot we get into on this hour+ long show like:

  • The build to WWE WrestleMania 41, the show itself, and the PR effort afterward for why The Rock skipped the show and the John Cena angle
  • A second straight AEW pay-per-view main event that ended in a meh feeling
  • WWE’s intent of a controlling interest of AAA
  • Naito and NJPW parting ways
  • Over 300 headlines and news items mentioned…and lots more.

Click here to listen for free or stream for free on either Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Past episodes:

The Rock to be honored at the American Black Film Festival

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

The Rock set to receive a special honor at the American Black Film Festival next year.

Starting his career as a pro-wrestler, Dwayne Johnson transitioned from WWE to Hollywood and has now been a part of the industry for over two decades. Celebrating his success and contribution to the industry, The Rock is now set to be honored at the 8th American Black Film Festival in February, 2026. According to an exclusive report by Variety, Johnson will receive the 2026 Entertainment Icon Award.

The event is scheduled to take place on February 16th at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills by the Nice Crowd. It’s co-CEOs and presidents Jeff Friday and Nicole Friday, expressed their excitement to present Johnson with the Entertainment Icon Award as a way to celebrate his “incredible contributions to the world of entertainment.”

The Rock never thought about ‘The Smashing Machine’s’ box-office performance

Earlier this year, The Rock starred as Mark Kerr in Benny Safdie’s ‘The Smashing Machine’ alongside Emily Blunt. While the film received strong critical acclaim, it underperformed at the box-office.

Despite failing to pass even $20 million mark, The Rock in a podcast with The Hollywood Reporter revealed his motivation for making the film. He said, “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.”

Irrespective of the financial outcome, The Rock is again set to team up with Benny Safdie for ‘Lizard Music’.

Daily Update: The Rock, Natalya, Maxxine Dupri

Posted on by Bryan Rose

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AEW & Other Wrestling

  • A memorial service for longtime NWA announcer Bob Caudle will be held at the Hayes Barton Baptist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina on November 25 at 2 pm.
  • The New York Times has a profile on pro wrestling entering its ‘museum era,’ focusing on performances like Choke Hole, a queer and drag artist troupe in New Orleans as well as the recent wrestling-themed exhibit at 52 Walker featuring Darby Allin.
  • Raven’s new documentary, Nevermore: The Raven Effect, launches today on Amazon Prime. 
  • The GoFundMe for George Tahinos, a longtime wrestling photographer who passed away over the weekend, has been launched.
  • KJ Orso vs. Joey Janela has been signed for GCW American Dream on November 22.

The Rock starts production on new movie

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is diving back into the “Jumanji” franchise as production begins on a new movie.

The third and final movie of the rebooted “Jumanji” franchise has begun production, with Johnson sharing some photos and clips of a table read the cast participated in. The movie — which has the working subtitle “Cross Platform” — will be filmed in Los Angeles. It’s set for a Christmas 2026 release.

“Officially kicking off production of JUMANJI, at our cast table read in Los Angeles – where we will film as well,” Johnson wrote. “What a massive, fun, heartfelt adventure. Feels emotionally appropriate for our beloved JUMANJI franchise to end on this beautiful grace note of our final film.

“Amazing to get the whole gang back together, and our jaws were hurting from laughing so hard. We all talked about how much we’ve missed this kinda joy and fun. Let’s make a good one.”

Johnson plays Dr. Smolder Bravestone in the franchise, which also stars Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan. The two movies — “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” and “Jumanji: The Next Level” — have been some of the biggest box-office successes of Johnson’s movie career. The franchise is based on the “Jumanji” children’s book and original 1995 movie that starred Robin Williams.

The most recent movie release for Johnson was “The Smashing Machine,” a biopic on MMA legend Mark Kerr. During the press tour for that film, Johnson expressed how proud he is of his daughter Simone for carving her own path in WWE. She is known as Ava in her role as NXT general manager.

Two WWE stars join The Rock in ‘Zootopia 2’ movie

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: Disney

WWE will be well-represented in the upcoming Disney film Zootopia 2.

Paradigm’s Nick LoPiccolo shared on social media Wednesday that Roman Reigns and CM Punk have done voice work for two zebra characters in the animated film set to be released on November 26. The agency represents both men.

The news comes a few weeks after it was revealed that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will voice the character Zeke.

Coming nearly a decade after the original that grossed $1 billion at the box office and won an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, the sequel is also expected to be a massive success.

Punk (Phil Brooks) has had several film and television roles since making his acting debut in 2019. His last role was on the Syfy TV show Revival while the horror movie Night Patrol that he appears in comes out in January.

Along with Cody Rhodes, Reigns (Joe Anoa’i) is set to appear in the upcoming Street Fighter movie currently in production. Another project he is involved in — Action Force — is in pre-production. His biggest role to date was in the 2019 Hobbs & Shaw spinoff of The Fast and the Furious franchise.