Has Dwayne Johnson truly become the ‘Final Boss’ of not just the ring, but also in backstage professionalism? In WWE, where larger-than-life personas battle it out under the spotlight, it’s not uncommon to hear rumors of diva behavior swirl like a wrestler caught in a high-flying tornado.
The Rock, 51, has built an enviable reputation as a muscular, hard-working action-comedy movie star with a lot of box office pull for more than 20 years. Notwithstanding, a significant report that includes accusations about The Scorpion King star’s tardiness and his recent WWE work was just published.
Chris Legentil, the Executive Vice President for talent relations at WWE, has, out of the blue, stepped up to support Johnson, defending the celebrity and casting a favorable light on the circumstances.
WWE Exec Clears Dwayne Johnson’s Name Amid Diva Behavior Allegations
Reputation is everything in the fiercely competitive world of professional wrestling. So, when accusations of diva behavior are leveled against one of the industry’s biggest stars, the company involved can face a major public relations nightmare. This is exactly what happened recently when Dwayne Johnson was accused of being difficult to work with at WrestleMania 40.
The Rock is alleged to have a habit of being late to sets in a new report published by The Wrap on April 30. The report quotes a “WWE insider” who stated that the actor was three hours late for the “main event match at WrestleMania 40”.
“Dwayne was not only on time for WrestleMania, he was hours early to help with rehearsal — and a pleasure to work with throughout the entire run.”
Meanwhile, Wrestling Inc. adds that sources within WWE have backed up the company’s official statement, stating that The Rock never caused any kind of delay during his “recent program” with Rhodes, including WrestleMania. Per the outlet, he did arrive late for a WWE World fan event, but it was because of traffic in Philadelphia and other obligations to WWE.
The Wrap’s article mainly dealt with alleged issues with Red One, a new holiday blockbuster from Amazon MGM that will open in theaters on November 15 of this year. Additionally, an Amazon-MGM representative refuted those reports, saying:
“Dwayne Johnson and Seven Bucks have been incredible partners on ‘Red One’. Any reporting that implies that we got to this point with him showing up seven-eight hours late to set is both ridiculous and false.”
As Dwayne Johnson became a full owner of The Rock name and joined the board of directors of the WWE’s parent company, it is not surprising that the WWE is defending him.
Dwayne Johnson’s Impact on Red One Finances?
Deadline reported in December of last year that there had been two tests for Dwayne Johnson’s Red One and that the results were “through the roof”.
Now, surprisingly enough, that moment has come. The budget for Red One has reportedly skyrocketed to $250 million in recent months, according to a shocking report from The Wrap. Johnson is alleged to be at fault for this. The actor allegedly regularly arrived on set “seven to eight hours” late on average, and occasionally he would simply not show up, resulting in expenses of about $50 million.
One insider put it bluntly:
“Dwayne truly doesn’t give a f–k.”
According to several insiders the outlet spoke with, Johnson has actually built a reputation in the industry for being unprofessional and arriving late to sets. Previous productions, such as Baller, Rampage, and Red Notice, were unsettled by his abrupt absence from the set. His lateness in the latter resulted in a “huge fight” with Ryan Reynolds, his co-star.
Anyway, Red One, helmed by Jake Kasdan, is slated to release on November 15, 2024.
