The Rock’s Legacy: 30 Legendary Facts About Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson

Dwayne Johnson was arrested 8 to 9 by the time he was 17 after being involved in a theft ring.

2. The appearance of ‘Maui’ (voiced by Dwayne Johnson himself) in the movie Moana is based on Dwayne Johnson’s real-life grandfather, high chief Peter Maivia of Samoa.

3. Dwayne Johnson's first WWF persona was Rocky Maivia (good guy). The audience rejected him due to his cheesy character, with chants of “Die, Rocky, die!”. After this, he became a heel (villain), referring to himself in the third person as “The Rock” and insulting the audience.

4. Dwayne has a bachelor’s degree in criminology and physiology from Miami University.

5. Dwayne Johnson played for the University of Miami’s 1991 National Championship football team and when injured the following year, he was replaced by future NFL Hall of Famer Warren Sapp.

Dwayne Johnson joined the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League in 1995 after being passed over by the NFL.

7. When Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was in the Canadian Football League, he was living “in a shoddy apartment that even a rat would run from” with 4 roommates and slept on “dumpster soiled mattresses” discarded by local motels. After being cut 2 months later, his wrestling career began.

8. His production company ‘Seven Bucks Production’ is named after how much money he had after being cut from the CFL (Canadian Football League) in 1995.

9. Dwayne Johnson was the first-ever wrestler to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship 8 times.

10. Dwayne Johnson’s first acting role was on “That 70’s Show” in which he played his real-life father, Rocky Johnson.

Dwayne Johnson comes from the Anoaʻi family, a Samoan family that has given the world over 16 professional wrestlers.

12. In October 2002, Variety reported that Warner Bros. had secured the film rights to make a live-action Johnny Bravo movie starring Dwayne Johnson. However, no further developments regarding this project have been announced since then.

13. Dwayne Johnson was paid $5.5 million for his first leading role as Mathayus in “The Scorpion King.” It's the highest salary of any first-time leading actor ever.

14. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was the 2nd person on earth to publicly report the news of Osama bin Laden’s death, only 47 seconds after a navy intel officer leaked it from official sources.

15. Dwayne Johnson's beard in Hercules (2014) was made out of yak testicle hair.

Dwayne Johnson was set to star in a movie about Hawaiian warrior-king Kamehameha, but he was pulled because he’s Samoan, with the producer saying, “It would be a great taboo for the part to go to a nationality that was a fierce enemy of the Hawaiians during that time.”

17. Dwayne Johnson’s manager is his ex-wife Dany Garcia who he split up with in 2007. She is currently married to Dave Rienzi who is Dwayne’s personal trainer. They have both said that they made better friends and coworkers than a couple, and are still super close.

18. In 2015, Dwayne Johnson became an ordained minister in order to surprise a superfan by officiating at his wedding.

19. Dwayne Johnson once suffered from gynecomastia and had to have breast reduction surgery.

20. Dwayne Johnson currently owns the rights to the name “The Rock” (including logos, phrases, etc). The rights to the name “The Rock” were previously owned by WWE, Inc. This is the main reason why Vince McMahon has received executive producer credits in some of the Rock's films.

Dwayne Johnson’s first cousin, Tanoai Reed, has nearly the same body type as ‘The Rock’ and has been his stunt double for all of his movies.

22. Dwayne Johnson found his character of Spencer/Dr. Bravestone in the “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” all too relatable. At the age of 16, he said he resembled a 46-year-old man, standing at 6'4, weighing 245 pounds, and sporting a thick mustache. Despite his bulky exterior, the young Dwayne was very much a vulnerable teen trying to find himself.

23. Dwayne Johnson was Tim Burton’s second choice for Willy Wonka in ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.’

24. A week before filming ended for Fast & Furious 8, Dwayne Johnson posted an infamous message on Instagram, confirming that the production had endured its share of on-set frictions: "This is my final week of shooting #FastAndFurious8. There's no other series that gets my blood boiling more than this one. An incredible hard-working crew. Universal has been a great partner as well. My female co-stars are always amazing and I love 'em. My male co-stars however are a different story. Some conduct themselves as stand-up men and true professionals, while others don't. The ones that don't are too chicken sh*t to do anything about it anyway. Candy a*ses. When you watch this movie next April and it seems like I'm not acting in some of these scenes and my blood is legit boiling - you're right. Bottom line is it'll play great for the movie and fits this Hobbs character that's embedded in my DNA extremely well. The producer in me is happy about this part. Final week on Fast 8 and I'll finish strong. ;/ #IcemanCometh #F8 #ZeroToleranceForCandyA*ses". The post came after co-star and Executive Producer Vin Diesel reportedly canceled some of Johnson's planned scenes at the last minute. On several occasions, Diesel had also reportedly refused to show up on-set as he was scheduled, leaving hundreds of cast, crew, and extras waiting for on-set for him for more than 6 hours. Diesel confronted Johnson in a secret meeting one day after Dwayne's message was posted online. Johnson later told The Hollywood Reporter that the meeting cleared up a few things. He confirmed that he and Diesel did not shoot scenes together because of "a fundamental difference in philosophies on how we approach filmmaking and collaborating", but that he was "grateful for that clarity". Although he did not provide details, it was later revealed that the announcement of Johnson's spin-off movie Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw (2019) was one of the main reasons for Diesel's behavior (as it would split up the series, and delay Fast & Furious 9 (2021)). Johnson stated that he would probably pass on Fast & Furious 9, but wished Diesel "all the best and I harbor no ill will there, just because of the clarity we have. Actually, you can erase that last part about 'no ill will.' We'll just keep it with the clarity".

25. The 1990s photo of Dwayne Johnson wearing a fanny pack is a popular internet meme. In the 2016 movie Central Intelligence, Dwayne Johnson’s character wore a fanny pack throughout the movie and the film made multiple comedic references to it.