The man formerly known as The Rock celebrated his birthday on May 2, but how much do you know about Dwayne Johnson? Here are some facts you might not know.
Dwayne Johnson, who turned 54 on May 2, is one of the biggest movie stars on the planet today, having racked up numerous box office hits as a leading man, or voicing a character, such as in Moana and its sequel.
Of course, Dwayne was famous long before he turned to acting, having been a hugely successful wrestler in WWE, winning multiple titles over more than a decade.
But how much do you know about Dwayne Johnson? Here are some fun facts you might not know about him.
He turned his life around at an early age
As a youngster, Dwayne struggled in high school and fell in with the wrong crowd and ended up getting arrested for various petty crimes, including fighting and theft. But his school’s football coach, Jody Cwik, saw potential in the tall, athletic boy, and persuaded him to join the school football team. This proved to be transformational for Dwayne, and he has said in interviews that it changed his mindset, to establishing goals and what he could accomplish in life. He also made the high school track and field and – unsurprisingly – wrestling teams.
He was nearly an NFL player
Having shown potential as a football player, he won a scholarship to the University of Miami. At Miami, he played in the Miami Hurricanes side that won the 1991 national championship.
After graduating, Dwayne went into the 1995 NFL draft, but remained unsigned. Soon after, he was signed by the Calgary Stampeders in the Canadian Football League. He was assigned to their practice roster, but was cut two months into the 1995 season.
Having been cut, Dwayne turned his attention to wrestling instead. A move that worked out quite well.
He is one of the most successful wrestlers of all time
Dwayne soon found success in WWE wrestling, initially as Rocky Maivia, but mostly as The Rock. In all, he has been world champion 10 times – he was also WWE’s first champion of African descent – as well as being Intercontental Champion twice, Tag Team Champion five times and winning the Royal Rumble in 2000. He was the sixth wrestler to achieve the Triple Crown. He also headlined WrestleMania on six occasions – 15, 16, 17, 28, 29, and night 1 of 40.
His first acting role was in a beloved TV show
Dwayne, like many WWE wrestlers before him, wanted to turn his attentions to acting on the big screen, and he made his debut in a blockbuster sequel in 2001. In The Mummy Returns, he played the antagonist Mathayus ‘The Scorpion King’. He reprised this role in the spin-off film The Scorpion King in 2002.
But Dwayne’s first foray into acting came a couple of years before, when he guest starred in an episode of That 70s Show titled ‘That Wrestling Show’ where he played his father, Rocky Johnson, who was a wrestling star at that time.
The Rock isn’t his only nickname
Throughout most of his tenure in WWE, Dwayne was known as The Rock – in his earliest days he was known as Rocky Maivia, a tribute to his father and grandfather’s wrestling names. It evolved into The Rock after crowds became hostile to his initial character. However, in recent years, as he has concentrated on acting, he has dropped the nickname.
But Dwayne has another nickname that predates his wrestling days – Dewey. When he was at college in Miami, his teammates referred to him as Dewey – and friends and co-stars still call him that name. Apparently, it started after his parents came to visit him at college and referred to him by that name in front of everyone.
