State Champ Radio Dwayne Johnson
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Dwayne Johnson, largely known by his pro wrestling moniker The Rock, rose from his time in the square circle to becoming one of Hollywood’s top draws. Johnson recently joined the company board that oversees the WWE and UFC and earned himself millions.
Dwayne Johnson, 51, was announced as the latest board member for TKO Group Holdings, Inc., a sports and entertainment company that recently merged the interests of the WWE and UFC on Tuesday (Jan. 23). The Rock has diversified his holdings via his production company Seven Bucks Productions, Teremana Tequila, ZOA Energy, and the UFL among other ventures. Now as a member of TKO Holdings’ board, Johnson not only earned substantial stock options but also retains full ownership of his stage name.
In a statement, Johnson spoke to the significance of his new role at TKO:
My grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia, and my dad, Rocky ‘Soulman’ Johnson, would’ve never thought this day would come. Which is why I’m very humbled to have a seat at the table that has decades of history and family legacy for me. A table that my family helped to build. Being on the TKO Board of Directors, and taking full ownership of my name, ‘The Rock’, is not only unprecedented, but incredibly inspiring as my crazy life is coming full circle. At my core, I’m a builder who builds for and serves the people, and Ari is building something truly game changing. I’m very motivated to help continue to globally expand our TKO, WWE, and UFC businesses as the worldwide leaders in sports and entertainment — while proudly representing so many phenomenal athletes and performers who show up every day putting in the hard work with their own two hands to make their dreams come true and deliver for our audiences. I’ve been there, I’m still there and this is for them.
The move puts Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson back next to TKO’s Executive Chairman of the Board, Vince McMahon who said of the move, “Very few people on the planet understand the convergence of sports, entertainment, media, and business like Rock. We are proud to have him join the TKO board to help take our company to new heights.”
Salute to Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock for this latest win.
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Photo: Icon Sportswire / Getty
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson quickly became one of the biggest names in Hollywood due to his multifaceted career as a former professional wrestler and football player, Teremana tequila founder and, of course, an actor. He’s known for his roles in Jumanji, The Game Plan, Get Smart, Black Adam, DC League of Super-Pets, the Fast & Furious franchise and so many more.
However, a lesser known fact about the 50-year-old star is that he’s also proficient in the music world. He has shared his musical talents on talk shows, on social media, in films and on actual studio recordings.
As a result, we at Billboard have compiled our favorite music moments by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. See them below in chronological order.
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Source: Warner Bros. / Warner Bros.
Ever since Warner Bros. tapped James Gunn to run their DCU film division, Gunn and his partner-in-crime, Peter Safran have made it very clear that they’re all about “out with the old and in with the new,” and though we’ve learned Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) and Superman (Henry Cavill) are out the door, Black Adam (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) had been somewhat in limbo.
No more. Yesterday The Rock took to Twitter to inform his millions (and millions!!) of Rock fans that his iteration of Black Adam wouldn’t be included in James Gunn vision of the DC universe, though he didn’t as far as to say that his character wouldn’t be returning to the big screen on his own. In a statement, Johnson confirmed that he met with James Gunn but unfortunately “Black Adam will not be in their first chapter of storytelling. However, DC and Seven Bucks have agreed to continue exploring the most valuable ways Black Adam can be utilized in future DC multiverse chapters.”
Wait, a DC multiverse?! So does that mean that Johnson’s Black Adam can somehow once again cross paths with Cavill’s Superman or Gadot’s Wonder Woman? We don’t know but from the looks of things, The Rock isn’t too upset with Gunn’s decision and is hoping that things turn out for the best. He continued:
“James and I have known each other for years and have always rooted for each other to succeed. It’s no different now, and I will always root for DC (and Marvel) to win and WIN BIG. You guys know me, and I have very thick skin—and you can always count on me to be direct with my words. These decisions made by James and DC leadership represent their vision of DCU through their creative lens.”
Notice how he threw Marvel in the mix. Could that be a wink and a nod at DC’s biggest (and only) competitor? Just sayin.’
The post comes after rumors began circulating that Johnson’s social media accounts had unfollowed both Warner Bros. and Black Adam’s accounts, which he claimed weren’t true at all. Though Black Adam wasn’t exactly the commercial or critical success that Warner Bros. would’ve liked, the film was one of the better DCU films to drop in quite some time, though that’s not saying much. Couple that with talk that the higher-ups at Warner Bros. were upset with The Rock for hyping up of Henry Cavill’s return as Superman to a rabid fanbase that forced them to fund and release the Snyder Cut to Justice League, and it seemed like that relationship was bound to break.
As to where Black Adam goes from here is anyone’s guess. Many assumed that he’d eventually take on Zachary Levi’s Shazam in the third installment to that film franchise, but no one knows if Shazam! will even survive James Gunn’s DCU reboot. Truth be told, we don’t really care if it does or doesn’t. No shots.
What do y’all think of The Rock’s statement on Black Adam‘s future? Let us know in the comments section below.
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