Fans of Avatar the Last Airbender would know The Boulder’s design from the original show was eerily similar to that of Dwayne Johnson, which was deliberate on the creators’ part. Being the face of pro wrestling at the time, Johnson’s popularity was through the roof, so it’s not hard to see why they opted for a design similar to him and even brought the Brahma Bull’s mannerisms into play.
While like The Rock, The Boulder too referred to him in the third person, the creatives weren’t able to get Johnson on board to voice the part. But they did manage to get Johnson’s frenemy from the WWE to voice the character.
Hardcore Icon Mick Foley Was Brought in to Voice The Boulder
Hardcore legend Mick Foley, who went by the three different personas in the Squared Circle, was known for going to extreme lengths to put his opponents over. During his run, Foley engaged in numerous clashes with The Rock, most famously at the 1999 Royal Rumble, in which Foley took 11 chair shots to the head from Dwayne Johnson. But the two still enjoy friendship outside of the ring, and in 2005, Foley was offered to voice The Rock-inspired professional earth-bending wrestler in Avatar the Last Airbender.
But 2005’s Avatar the Last Airbender wasn’t the lone time Foley voiced the professional wrestler, as he also returned to voice The Boulder in the Wii game ATLA- The Burning Earth.
Dwayne Johnson Wasn’t Interested in Doing Television at the Time
Prior to resorting to Mick Foley for The Boulder, the creatives behind the show originally wanted the Black Adam Star to voice the character. Unfortunately, upon reaching the Black Adam Star with the offer to voice The Boulder, Johnson’s agent stressed that the WWE Superstar wasn’t interested in doing television at the time. Speaking on the Avatar: Braving the Elements podcast, Michael Dante DiMartino, creator of the acclaimed series alongside Bryan Konietzko, revealed:
“This was before he was like the Rock as we know him now, but he was definitely on that trajectory, and since [the Boulder] was modeled after him, we tried to get him to be the voice,”
While having Johnson voice The Boulder would’ve been incredible, especially following his mic skills, fans were content with what Mick Foley brought to the table. And with the live-action adaptation becoming a success for Netflix, if the show stays true to its source material, we could witness The Boulder in a potential season two. But it’ll be interesting to see whom Netflix would bring in to play the character onscreen, as not many capable actors are currently there who could embody the WWE Superstar and his mannerisms.
Avatar the Last Airbender is available to stream on Netflix.
