Dwayne Johnson
Dwayne Douglas Johnson OC (born May 2, 1972), also known by his nickname and ring name The Rock, is an American actor and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE. Johnson is also the co-owner of United Football League (UFL) and is on the board of directors for TKO Group Holdings, the parent company for both the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and WWE.[6][7] A third generation wrestler, he is part of the Anoa'i Family. He is the father of Simone Johnson, better known as NXT General manager Ava. His popularity in wrestling led to a sucessful acting career.
Dwayne Johnson | |
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![]() Johnson in 2023 | |
Born | Hayward, California, U.S. | May 2, 1972
Occupations |
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Years active | 1990–1995 (football) 1996–2004; 2011–2013; 2016; 2023– present (wrestling) 1999–present (acting) |
Spouses |
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Children | 3 |
Relatives | Rocky Johnson (father) Peter Maivia (grandfather) Lia Maivia (grandmother) Nia Jax (cousin) Rosey (cousin) Roman Reigns (cousin) Sib Hashian (father-in-law) Ava Raine (daughter) |
Ring name(s) | Dwayne Johnson[1] Flex Kavana[2] Rocky Maivia[2] The Rock[2] |
Billed height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm)[3] |
Billed weight | 260 lb (118 kg)[3] |
Billed from | Miami, Florida[3] |
Trained by | Pat Patterson[4] Rocky Johnson[2] Tom Prichard[5] |
Debut | March 10, 1996 |
Early life
changeJohnson was born on May 2, 1972 in Hayward, California. His father, WWE Hall of Fame Rocky Johnson, was of Black Nova Scotian and Irish descent and his mother is Samoan.
Professional wrestling
changeJohnson began his career as a football player. He played in the Canadian Football League. This only lasted a couple of months before he was let go. He then chose to become a professional wrestler like his father, Rocky Johnson, and grandfather, Peter Maivia. He began working for the WWE (then known as the World Wrestling Federation) and became very well known. He is one of the most popular wrestlers ever. He has won 16 championships. These include both alone and in a tag team. He has also won the Royal Rumble. He was the sixth person to win WWE's "Triple Crown". This means he won all three of the main championships - the WWE Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the World Tag Team Championship. Johnson also has many nicknames to his Rock resume: “The Great One”, “The Most Electrifying Man in All of Entertainment/Sports Entertainment”, “The Brahma Bull”, “Rocky”, and “The People’s Champ/Champion”. One of his most popular feuds during his career was against Stone Cold Steve Austin. It was also one of the most popular feuds in the Attitude Era.[8]
On February 14, 2011, The Rock was announced as the host of WrestleMania XXVII on April 3, 2011, appearing live on Raw for the first time in almost seven years. At WresteMania, after the main event between John Cena and The Miz for the WWE Championship ended in a draw, The Rock restarted the match as a no disqualification match. When the bell rang to start the rematch he hit the "Rock Bottom" on John Cena to let The Miz pin Cena and keep his championship. After the match The Rock came back in the ring and hit the "People's Elbow" on The Miz to end the show. On the following Raw, John Cena called out The Rock and challenged him to a match. The Rock accepted his challenge and said that if they are going to fight, they were going to do it at WrestleMania XXVIII. The Corre came out after The Rock accepted and attacked both The Rock and Cena, Cena and The Rock fought back and beat The Corre. The Rock defeated Cena on April 1 at WrestleMania. On January 27, 2013, The Rock defeated CM Punk at the Royal Rumble to win the WWE Championship for an eighth time. He lost it to Royal Rumble winner John Cena in their rematch on April 7 at WrestleMania 29. He returned in October 2014 to have a face-off with Rusev on Raw.[9]
On the September 15, 2023 episode of SmackDown, The Rock made a return for the first time in four years. He interrupted a promo between Pat McAfee and Austin Theory. He ended up hitting Theory with The People's Elbow with McAfee also hitting one on Theory after.[10] In February 2024, after being angered by Royal Rumble winner Cody Rhodes, The Rock turned heel and joined The Bloodline stable, led by his cousin Roman Reigns.[11] He then got another nickname, "The final boss".[12]
Championships and awards
change- Pro Wrestling Illustrated
- PWI Match of the Year (1999) (vs. Mankind in an "I Quit" match at Royal Rumble)[13]
- PWI Match of the Year (2002) (vs. Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania X8)[14]
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (1999, 2000)[15]
- PWI Wrestler of the Year (2000)[16]
- He was ranked #2 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2000.[17]
- He was ranked #14 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2001.[18]
- He was ranked #9 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2002.[19]
- United States Wrestling Association
- USWA World Tag Team Championship (two times) (with Bart Sawyer)[20]
- World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE
- WCW/World Championship (two times)1[21][22]
- WWF/E Championship (eight times)2[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30]
- WWF Intercontinental Championship (two times)[31][32]
- World Tag Team Championship (five times) (with Mankind (three), The Undertaker (one), and Chris Jericho (one))[33][34][35][36][37]
- Royal Rumble (2000)[38]
- Slammy Award for New Sensation (1997)[39]
- Slammy Award for Game Changer of the Year (2011) (with John Cena)
- Slammy Award for Guess Who's Back or: Return of the Year (2011)
- Slammy Award for LOL! Moment of the Year (2012) (Insulting John Cena using the history of Boston, Massachusetts)
- Slammy Award for LOL! Moment of the Year (2013) (The Rock Concert on the 20th Anniversary of Raw)[40]
- Slammy Award for Match of the Year (2013) (vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 29)[41]
- Sixth Triple Crown Champion
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Best Box Office Draw (2000, 2011, 2012)
- Best Gimmick (1999)
- Best on Interviews (1999–2000)
- Most Charismatic (1999–2002, 2011, 2012)
- Most Improved (1998)
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2007)
1The Rock won the championship during The Invasion
2His seventh reign was as Undisputed WWE Champion
Acting
changeJohnson as began acting in 1999. In 2004, he stopped wrestling so that he could focus on acting. During this time, he was in many movies. He was also a guest star in some television series. He usually played himself in these episodes. He played the Scorpion King in The Mummy Returns and The Scorpion King. He was also in the movies Race to Witch Mountain, The Other Guys, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island and G.I. Joe - Retaliation. He is set to play Shazam! villain Black Adam in the DC Extended Universe movies, staring with his own movie titled Black Adam in 2022.
Movies
change- Dog Days - Lucas, Edson (1995)
- Beyond the Mat - Himself (1999)
- Longshot - Mugger (2000)
- The Mummy Returns - The Scorpion King (2001)
- The Scorpion King - Mathayus the Scorpion King (2002)
- The Rundown - Beck (2003)
- Walking Tall - Chris Vaughn (2004)
- Be Cool - Elliot Wilhelm (2005)
- Doom - Sarge (2005)
- Dog Days II - Lucas (2005)
- Gridiron Gang - Sean Porter (2006)
- Reno 911!: Miami - Agent Rick Smith (2007)
- Southland Tales - Boxer Santaros (2007)
- The Game Plan - Joe Kingman (2007)
- Dog Days 3 - Lucas (2007)
- Get Smart - Agent 23 (2008)
- Race to Witch Mountain - Jack Bruno (2009)
- Planet 51 - Capt. Charles 'Chuck' Baker (2009)
- Tooth Fairy - Derek Thompson / Tooth Fairy (2010)
- Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too? - Daniel Franklin (Patricia's new boyfriend) (2010)
- Faster - Driver (2010)
- The Other Guys - Detective Christopher Danson (2010)
- You Again - Air Marshall (2010)
- Fast Five - Luke Hobbs (2011)
- Journey 2: The Mysterious Island - Hank Parsons (2011)
- G.I. Joe - Retaliation - Jon M. Chu (2012)
- Pain & Gain - Paul Doyle (2013)
- Fast & Furious 6 - Luke Hobbs (2013)
- Empire State - Detective James Ransome (2013)
- Hercules: The Thracian Wars - Hercules (2014)[42]
- Fast & Furious 7 - Luke Hobbs (2015)[43]
- Moana - Maui (2016)
- Fate of the Furious -Luke Hobbs
- Baywatch (2017)
- Rampage - Davis Okoye (2018)
- Skyscraper - Will Sawyer (2018)
- Jumanji: The Next Level - Dr. Xander "Smolder" Bravestone (2019)
- Hobbs & Shaw - Luke Hobbs (2019)
- Free Guy - Bank Robber #2 (2021)
- Jungle Cruise - Francisco Lopez de Heredia / Captain Frank Skipper Wolff (2021)
- Red Notice - John Hartley (2021)
- Black Adam - Black Adam (2022)
Television
change- That '70s Show - Rocky Johnson (1999)
- The Net - Brody (1999)
- Star Trek: Voyager - The Champion (2000)
- Saturday Night Live - Guest host (2000 to 2008)
- Cory in the House - Himself (2007)
- Hannah Montana - Himself (2008)
- Wizards of Waverly Place - Himself (2009)
- Transformers: Prime - Cliffjumper (2010)
- Family Guy - Himself (2010)
- The Hero - Himself (2013) (host/producer)
- Wake Up Call - Himself (2014) (host/producer)
- Ballers - Spencer Strasmore (2014) (also executive producer)
- Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
- Jumanji: The Next Level (2019)
Video Games
change- The Scorpion King: Rise of the Akkadian - Mathayus (2002)
- Fortnite - The End Chapter 2 (2021)
Personal life
changeJohnson is a part of the Anoa'i wrestling family. He isthe son of professional wrestler Rocky Johnson and the grandson of Peter Maivia. His mother is Samoan. His father is a Black Canadian from Nova Scotia. Because his father is Canadian, Johnson was given Canadian citizenship in 2009 through changes to the law.[44] His daughter Simone also works in WWE under the ring name Ava (formerly Ava Raine), making her the first ever fourth-generation wrestler in the company.[45]
In August 2020, Johnson revealed that he and his family were diagnosed with COVID-19 during the pandemic in the United States.[46]
References
change- ↑ "The Rock". Cagematch. Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Milner, John. "The Rock Bio". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved April 13, 2008.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson". WWE. Retrieved March 9, 2012.
- ↑ "The Rock " Wrestler-Datenbank " CAGEMATCH – The Internet Wrestling Database". Cagematch.de. Archived from the original on June 28, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
- ↑ Dworkis, Michael. "Dr. Tom Prichard: The Doctor of Talent". MichaelDworkis.com. Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2012.
- ↑ "Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson buys XFL for $15 million with partner Redbird Capital, per report". CBS Sports. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
- ↑ "'The Rock' joins UFC, WWE's TKO Group board". ESPN. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
- ↑ "The Rock yearned to be as popular with the fans as "Stone Cold" Steve Austin: A&E WWE Rivals: "Stone Cold" Austin vs. The Rock". WWE. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
- ↑ "Royal Rumble 2013 results". WWE. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
- ↑ "SmackDown results, Sept. 15, 2023: The Rock and John Cena lead the charge on an explosive SmackDown". WWE. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
- ↑ Powell, Jason (February 8, 2024). "WrestleMania XL Kickoff press conference live coverage: Cody Rhodes announces his decision, The Rock, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, and Triple H appear". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
- ↑ Lambert, Jeremy (March 13, 2024). "The Rock Dubs Himself As The 'Final Boss' | Fightful News". www.fightful.com. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners: Match of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2007-01-08. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners: Match of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2011-09-05. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners: Most Popular Wrestler of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2011-09-05. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Award Winners: Wrestler of the Year". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2008-04-16. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2000". Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2001". Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2002". Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "USWA United States Wrestling Association: USWA World Tag Team Title History". Solie's Title Histories. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
- ↑ "WCW World Championship - The Rock (August 19, 2001 - October 21, 2001)". WWE. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved 2013-01-06.
- ↑ "WCW World Championship - The Rock (November 05, 2001 - December 09, 2001)". WWE. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (November 15, 1998 - January 04, 1999)". WWE. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (January 24, 1999 - January 31, 1999)". WWE. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (February 15, 1999 - March 28, 1999)". WWE. Archived from the original on October 11, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (April 30, 2000 - May 21, 2000)". WWE. Archived from the original on December 27, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (June 25, 2000 - October 22, 2000)". WWE. Archived from the original on December 27, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (February 25, 2001 - April 01, 2001)". WWE. Archived from the original on August 26, 2015. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (July 21, 2002 - August 25, 2002)". WWE. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "WWE Championship - The Rock (January 27, 2013 - April 07, 2013)". WWE. Archived from the original on December 27, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Intercontinental Championship - Rocky Maivia (February 13, 1997 - April 28, 1997)". WWE. Archived from the original on November 10, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Intercontinental Championship - The Rock (December 08, 1997 - August 30, 1998)". WWE. Archived from the original on December 27, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "World Tag Team Championship - Mankind & The Rock (August 30, 1999 - September 09, 1999)". WWE. Archived from the original on October 10, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "World Tag Team Championship - Mankind & The Rock (September 20, 1999 - September 23, 1999)". WWE. Archived from the original on December 12, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "World Tag Team Championship - Mankind & The Rock (October 14, 1999 - October 18, 1999)". WWE. Archived from the original on October 10, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "World Tag Team Championship - The Rock & Undertaker (December 18, 2000 - December 21, 2000)". WWE. Archived from the original on March 19, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "World Tag Team Championship - The Rock & Chris Jericho (October 22, 2001 - November 01, 2001)". WWE. Archived from the original on March 19, 2014. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Royal Rumble 2000: Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Slammy Awards: A look back". WWE. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "LOL Moment of the Year: 2013 Slammy Award Presentation". WWE. Archived from the original on 2014-01-10. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Match of the Year: 2013 Slammy Award Presentation". WWE. Archived from the original on 2014-01-10. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "'Hercules' Release Date Moves to July 25, 2014". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Fast & Furious 7 Moved Back to April 2015". ComingSoon.net. Archived from the original on 2013-12-24. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
- ↑ "Stars You May Not Know Are Canadian - Dwayne Johnson". Yahoo!. Retrieved 2014-03-19.[permanent dead link]
- ↑ "Simone Johnson, daughter of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Dany Garcia, begins training at WWE Performance Center". WWE. February 10, 2020. Archived from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
- ↑ The Rock: I Got COVID...So Did My Wife and My Kids at TMZ
Other websites
change- Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson on WWE.com
- Dwayne Johnson on Twitter