In the history of Hollywood, there have been a few athletes who have successfully made the transition to full-fledged movie star. There is no doubt that Dwayne Johnson a.k.a. The Rock has joined that exclusive club.
Johnson initially played college football and was a member of the 1991 University of Miami National Championship team. After failing to catch on the Canadian football league, he followed in the footsteps of his grandfather and dad and began a career as a professional wrestler.
Initially using the name Rocky Maivia and later The Rock, he gained mainstream fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1996 to 2004, and was the first third-generation wrestler in the company’s history. He won the WWF Championship in 1999 and became one of the most popular wrestlers ever, primarily for his charismatic interviews and promos. Considered one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, The Rock has had 17 championship reigns in WWE, including 10 as a world heavyweight champion (the WWF/E Championship eight times and the WCW/World Championship twice), the WWF Intercontinental Championship twice and the WWF Tag Team Championship five times. He is the sixth WWF/E Triple Crown Champion, and the winner of the 2000 Royal Rumble.
He made his leading film debut in 2002 in The Scorpion King in 2002 and collected a record $5.5 million for the role, a record for an actor in his first starring role. The busy and in-demand actor has since appeared in several successful movies, including The Rundown, Be Cool, Walking Tall, Gridiron Gang, The Game Plan, Get Smart, Race to Witch Mountain, Planet 51, Tooth Fairy, Doom, The Other Guys and Faster and Fast Five.
In 2012, Johnson appeared in Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. He starred in the 2013 film Snitch, which opened to mixed reviews; however, Johnson’s performance was praised. This year, he will play Roadblock in G.I. Joe: Retaliation and will reprise his role as Luke Hobbs in Fast & Furious 6. He will also star in Pain & Gain and Empire State. In addition to these films, Johnson is also the host and producer of the reality competition/game show series The Hero, which will premiere on TNT in summer 2013. He is also set to star in Hercules: The Thracian Wars in 2014.
As I said in earlier article, the Rock is EVERYWHERE!!!
Check out our gallery from some of his most popular films, below:
