“It never felt right to me”: Dwayne Johnson Admits He Did Not Like Vince McMahon’s Plan For Him After His WWE Debut
Being a multifaceted celebrity has done well for Dwayne Johnson. Not many pull off donning multiple hats. Being a bankable Hollywood star, and successful actor, and having a gilded history in professional wrestling launched him to global stardom.
Johnson’s journey to the top has been an interesting one. His versatility and changing career paths have made him appealing to varied audiences. The 51-year-old’s life has not been without challenges. But his experiences make the best of stories.
In his recent appearance on the JRE podcast, the actor opened up about his initial days as a WWE wrestler. And how he didn’t agree with the plan Vince McMahon, co-founder of WWE and president at the time had for The Rock’s launch in the pro-wrestling scene.
Dwayne Johnson’s Disastrous Debut
Now known as one of the most influential people on the globe, was once getting booed by a crowd of thousands. Dwayne Johnson’s WWE debut was far from perfect. And it couldn’t have less to do with his fighting skills.
The wrestling sport or rather the pro-wrestling world, like any other entertainment business, is intricately linked with fan engagement. The ring could have the deadliest fight going on but it wouldn’t matter if the crowd wasn’t cheering, booing, or hyping the fighters up.
During Johnson’s debut days, there was a lot of booing. This gesture of discouragement was a result of something McMohan had suggested the Rock to do. Being new in the pro-wrestling scene, the Black Adam star went along with what his boss told him to do even though he “never felt right” about it. As it turned out it was for good reason because McMohan’s plan had the audience chanting “Rocky Sucks!” in Johnson’s first Wrestlemania.
The Rock on Vincent McMahon’s Plan
Speaking about the matter on the JRE Podcast, Johnson revealed how McMohan advised him to smile during his fights.“You can’t smile enough,” as a gesture of gratefulness. This was something the Hercules star found odd, he expressed his discomfort by saying:
“It started not to feel good to me. These I’m getting beaten. Losing matches and still smiling, never felt right to me, here (points to his heart).”
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The actor further elaborated his point by saying that this was the advent of the Attitude Era.
“This was an interesting time, fans were chanting the heels, anti-authority, fuck the boss. Led by stone-cold Steve Austin, giving everybody the bird. Fans loved that and gravitated toward that.”
Being the bad guy was making Steve Austin a fan favorite, which was new in the world of wrestling. Young and naive Dwayne Johnson didn’t know any better than to keep a positive and nice attitude. This was something that went against what was popular at the time. And wrestling being a martial art extension of showbiz it is, drives heavily on popularity. Something that did not start out well for Dwayne Johnson.
