Dwayne ”The Rock” Johnson is undoubtedly one of the biggest names in the world of pro wrestling as well as Hollywood, as his name is known to almost everyone on the planet at this point in time. He only became a household name after transitioning to Hollywood, where he is now considered a Box Office juggernaut. That being said, he also had his fair share of Box Office duds in his career, which cast a lot of doubt over his longevity and acting abilities in general – especially Southland Tales.
Dwayne Johnson transitioned to the film industry with his debut in 2001’s The Mummy Returns. He then got his own standalone film called The Scorpion King in 2002, which didn’t exactly set the world on fire. Throughout the 2000s and 2010s, Johnson took on roles in a mix of action films and family-oriented movies. Most of them had decent Box Office success but had mixed reception from fans and critics alike.
Dwayne Johnson’s Acting Career Took A While To Really Take Off
The early years of Dwayne Johnson‘s career were largely hit or miss, with films either performing well enough or underperforming to an alarming degree. This included films such as Gridiron Gang, The Tooth Fairy, Doom, and many more – all of which made fans question why he would even go to Hollywood in the first place.
Thankfully, Johnson’s career reached new heights with notable appearances in commercially successful movies like Moana, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and the Fast and Furious franchise – catapulting him to the absolute top of Hollywood for a time.
South Land Tales Remains Dwayne Johnson’s Biggest Box Office Bomb To Date
Southland Tales stands out as one of the most infamous box office failures in cinematic history. Despite having a budget of $17 million, the film bombed in spectacular fashion, grossing just $374,743 at the box office. The film was supposed to set the stage for a franchise but faced immediate setbacks, including incredibly poor critical reception, among other things.
Unsurprisingly, Southland Tales has largely been overshadowed and buried since its release. Its poor performance at the box office makes it the most significant financial failure in Johnson’s career. It has scored a horrendous 41% on Rotten Tomatoes, with many critics bashing it for being unpolished and incoherent.
”A radical, swirling hallucination of ideas that all feel grabbed at random.” – Alternate Ending
”A cluttered and cacophonous screed with big ideas but shriveled results.” – Film Frenzy
”It’s the sort of experience you feel embarrassed about even though you had nothing to do with it, because it’s not just a mess, it’s a pretentious mess.” – Film Freak Central
”The type of incoherent, indulgent muddle that can only emerge from the mind of someone who is quite talented.” – TheMovieReport.com
While some may think just because critics panned the movie, that doesn’t mean fans hate it – they are in for a rude awakening as fans equally hated the film. As revealed by the film’s 5.3/10 score on IMDB, the film barely got any good reviews, and for good reason. An audience review stated,
”Long rambling slice of life in an alternative America just before the end of the world by the creator of Donnie Darko. Surprisingly well acted by everyone except Sean William Scott, this film is so out there as to be in another galaxy. Truly operating in a world not our own, you either have to accept it on its own terms or you’ll go mad. At times hysterically funny in an uneasy “is this a comedy or not?” sort of way it comes off more or less like a huge joke on everyone from the studio heads to the audience. Richard Kelly can’t be serious…. Watching it I was both drawn in hoping at some point something would make sense and not seem like we were being put on, while at the same time ripping it apart as nothing made sense and it just got weirder and weirder for no good reason. Running at a length something akin to 4 days long I can’t imagine what this was like in its longer cut. I think the best description of the film is Roger Eberts screaming venom filled rant. While I do not have that much bile to cover it I completely understand where he’s coming from.”
Another review stated:
”What the hell did I just watch??? I’m so confused. So many random ideas pilled into one big movie about America with some fourth dimension stuff. I’m big fan of Donnie Darko but this is just too much. The acting is horrible, the dialogue is even worse (there are so many sex jokes that aren’t funny at all). Justin Timberlake’s character is just sitting in the middle of the sea with the gun lol, also The Killer’s song sequence was the most random thing in this chaotic movie. Hot mess.”
Dwayne Johnson has quite a few projects in the pipeline – all of which are likely to earn a lot of money at the Box Office. Despite that, he never forgets to look back on all of his failures, as those are what truly taught him how to become an actor in Hollywood.
