“Black Adam doesn’t give a f*ck”: Dwayne Johnson’s Savage Response to a DC Fan Trying to Hype Up Zack Snyder’s Joker

Dwayne Johnson may have leaned into his role as a heel in the WWE, but he has always been savage in and out of the ring. The actor was in character as the ruthless anti-hero Black Adam on multiple occasions and amped up the persona while promoting the 2022 film. While he was cast in the role in 2014, the actor’s solo film only opened years later to mixed reviews.

Johnson had always been promoting his entry into the DCEU and had spoken about the powerful persona of Black Adam. The actor hyped up his superhero and leaned into his anti-hero persona for promotions. The actor responded to a fan who hyped up Jared Leto’s Joker in Suicide Squad in typical Black Adam fashion.

Dwayne Johnson’s Savage Response To DC Fan’s Hype For Jared Leto’s Joker

Dwayne Johnson’s marketing efforts for Black Adam began even before the film was officially greenlit, with the actor hyping up his inclusion in the DCEU ever since he was cast. The actor was first reportedly chosen to play Shazam before he was introduced to his primary antagonist. The actor announced in 2014 that he would be Black Adam in the DCEU (via Variety).

While the film languished in developmental hell for years and a planned appearance in Shazam only resulted in a cameo, Johnson finally got to don his suit in a solo film. The actor mentioned that he had been a fan of the character since he was a kid and because he looked like him and was a “bad*ss”, he gravitated toward the antihero more (via DC Nation).

While promoting the 2022 film, Johnson put out a video announcing his appearance at the DC panel at San Diego Comic-Con. Johnson claimed Black Adam was the most ruthless and electrifying character in the DC universe.  The X (formerly Twitter) page The Ayer Cut replied to that claim with a statement about Jared Leto’s Joker in Suicide Squad.

No, because Black Adam doesn’t give a fuck.

— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) July 8, 2022

Johnson, in character as the antihero, responded with a savage response that put to bed all speculations about who the most ‘electrifying’ DC character was. Jared Leto’s Joker has always been criticized for its over-the-top presentation. The actor only appeared sparingly in Suicide Squad and then had a cameo in Zack Snyder’s Justice League.

Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam Sequel Was Cancelled Despite The Hype

DC’s mismanagement issues have always been a problem for its films. While Zack Snyder’s planned franchise was constantly meddled with by the studio, changing leaderships and the dissolution of the DCEU led to Henry Cavill having to exit the franchise despite announcing two months prior that he would be returning as Superman.

According to Dwayne Johnson, this was also the reason why Black Adam did not get a sequel. The hyped superhero film was reportedly a box-office disaster, earning only $393 million against an approximately $260 million budget. The film reportedly faced losses as a result of its underwhelming theatrical run (via Variety).

Johnson spoke about the sequel and its cancellation on an episode of Hart to Heart,

I think that Black Adam got caught in a vortex of new leadership…It was so many changes in leadership. Anytime you have a company, a publicly traded company, and you have all those changes in leadership, you have people coming in who creatively, fiscally, are going to make decisions that you may not agree with, philosophically.

While the film itself received mixed reviews, the Rock’s savage responses and hype for Black Adam’s ‘electrifying’ personality seemed to have not worked for audiences at the time. After James Gunn and Peter Safran took over as the heads of the DCU, they mentioned no immediate plans to work on a Black Adam sequel.

Black Adam is currently streaming on Max.