AKA Dwayne Douglas Johnson

Born: 2-May-1972
Birthplace: Hayward, CA

Gender: Male
Race or Ethnicity: Multiracial [1]
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Actor, Wrestling
Party Affiliation: See Note [2]

Nationality: United States
Executive summary: Yeah, yeah -- we smell it

Dwayne Johnson was the first third-generation wrestler in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). His maternal grandfather was wrestler "High Chief" Peter Maivia, and his father is wrestler Rocky Johnson.

Johnson grew up in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and played football well enough to be offered a number of scholarships. He chose the University of Miami, he said, because they didn't actively recruit him. Johnson was a part of the Hurricanes 1990 NCAA National Championship team. After college, Johnson signed a three year contract with the Canadian Football League's Calgary Stampeders, but a back injury caused him to be cut from the team after his first season. Johnson knew he wanted to be an entertainer, so he spoke to his father about becoming a wrestler. His father was opposed to the idea, but agreed to train his son. Johnson tried out and did well. He joined the United States Wrestling Association and, playing up his Samoan heritage, wrestled as "Flex Kavana". Johnson was a "face", meaning a good guy.

When he moved up to the WWF in 1996, he combined his father's and grandfather's names and wrestled as "Rocky Maivia". Though he was still a face, the crowds were harder to please than they'd been in the minor leagues, and would insult players that seemed too soft. "I became so hated that when I went into the ring I was bombarded with batteries, coins, cans, you name it," he remembers. "I had to leave every night with security covering my head." His persona switched from "face" to "heel", and Johnson began to wrestle as The Rock. His admittedly bad temper led to some memorable moments, as when he furiously chased a San Diego State mascot around the football field during a televised event. He learned to control his temper by "turning the other cheek", and The Rock began to resemble Dwayne Johnson -- charismatic, cocky, and taunting his opponents with lines that are now famous: "lay the smack down!"

As The Rock's popularity grew, he was widely credited with a surge in the popularity of wrestling, and as a result he began crossing over into non-wrestling territory, appearing in Wyclef Jean's video of "It Doesn't Matter", and hosting Saturday Night Live. Acting offers began to come in, and The Rock appeared as his own father on That 70s Show, and played "The Champion" on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager. He had a tiny role in a 2000 flop called Longshot, but made a more auspicious debut as the Scorpion King in Brendan Fraser's lukewarm sequel The Mummy Returns in 2001. He has since starred in an eponymous sequel, The Scorpion King, and played a gay bodyguard in Elmore Leonard's Be Cool, with John Travolta and Uma Thurman. His success in movies has been such that The Rock didn't renew his WWF contract when it lapsed at the end of 2004.

[2] Spoke at the 2000 Republican National Convention, though he had registered to vote only the previous day as an Independent. Johnson also attended the Democratic National Convention that same year. His current political affiliation is not publicly known. In an interview dated 3 February 2012, he told Moviefone: "Right now the best way that I can impact the world is through entertainment. One day, and that day will come, I can impact the world through politics. The great news is that I am American, therefore I can become President. But don't forget: I am G.I. Joe."

Father: Rocky Johnson (pro wrestler)
Mother: Ata Maivia-Johnson (daughter of pro wrestler Peter Maivia)
Wife: Dany Garcia (financial planner, dated 1990-97, m. 3-May-1997, sep . 1-Jun-2007)
Daughter: Simone Alexandra Johnson (b. 14-Aug-2001)

    High School: Freedom High School, Bethlehem, PA
    University: University of Miami Florida

    World Wrestling Entertainment
    Endorsement of Microsoft Consumer Electronics Show keynote, Las Vegas, NV (6-Jan-2001)
    Liposuction chest
    Hernia Operation 22-Apr-2013
    Samoan Ancestry Maternal
    Risk Factors: Diabetes, Hernia

    FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
    Fighting With My Family (28-Jan-2019)
    Skyscraper (11-Jul-2018)
    Rampage (11-Apr-2018)
    Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (5-Dec-2017)
    Baywatch (12-May-2017)
    The Fate of the Furious (4-Apr-2017)
    Moana (14-Nov-2016) [VOICE]
    Central Intelligence (10-Jun-2016)
    Jem and the Holograms (22-Oct-2015)
    San Andreas (21-May-2015)
    Furious Seven (16-Mar-2015)
    Hercules (23-Jul-2014)
    Fast & Furious 6 (7-May-2013)
    Pain & Gain (11-Apr-2013)
    G. I. Joe: Retaliation (27-Mar-2013)
    Empire State (19-Mar-2013)
    Snitch (21-Feb-2013)
    Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (19-Jan-2012) · Hank
    Fast Five (15-Apr-2011) · Hobbs
    Faster (4-Nov-2010) · Driver
    The Other Guys (6-Aug-2010) · Christopher Danson
    Why Did I Get Married Too? (2-Apr-2010)
    Tooth Fairy (14-Jan-2010) · Derek
    Planet 51 (14-Nov-2009) · Captain Charles T. Baker [VOICE]
    Race to Witch Mountain (11-Mar-2009)
    Get Smart (18-Jun-2008)
    The Game Plan (28-Sep-2007)
    Operation Filmmaker (Jan-2007) · Himself
    Gridiron Gang (15-Sep-2006)
    Southland Tales (21-May-2006) · Boxer Santaros
    Doom (20-Oct-2005)
    Be Cool (4-Mar-2005)
    Walking Tall (02-Apr-2004)
    The Rundown (22-Sep-2003) · Beck
    The Scorpion King (15-Nov-2002) · Mathayus
    The Mummy Returns (29-Apr-2001)
    Longshot (2000)

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