Dwayne Johnson is an unstoppable force in the Hollywood industry. The actor-turned-wrestler had a rough childhood and struggled on a daily basis. He began his journey as a wrestler and later turned into a successful actor, and while his latest film Black Adam did not perform well at the Box-Office, this has not stopped the actor from pursuing bigger and better films.
Dwayne Johnson is one of the biggest action stars in the industry. He has a work ethic and an appearance that millions would like to emulate. But it is difficult since the actor spends hundreds of dollars a year just on nourishment. Yet, he remains committed and has emerged as the world’s top action star, a position Arnold Schwarzenegger formerly had.
Dwayne Johnson is immensely inspired by Arnold Schwarzenegger
By now, everyone is familiar with Dwayne Johnson’s life story: he was poor growing up and reached his lowest point in the CFL, leaving with only $7 in his pocket.
Dwayne Johnson continued a solid training program despite the challenges, in large part because of individuals who had previously achieved success. Together with Muscle And Fitness, DJ shared how Arnold Schwarzenegger altered his life by showing him how improving his physique will help him succeed in other areas. The actor recalled,
“I’ll never forget my mom crying and I’ll never forget the thought I had: ‘Well the only thing I can do is just go build my body,’ because the men who were successful that I knew of—Stallone, Arnold, Bruce Willis—they were men of action.”
This pushed him to change things and soon Johnson bulked up and became The Rock. He gained great fame in WWE until he shifted gears and headed right into Hollywood. During those tough times, the actor bought a major shift in his psychology.
“When it comes to hard work and things I’m passionate about – years ago, I stopped saying ‘I have to’ and started saying ‘I get to. Big psychological shift in how you approach the daily grind of shit we gotta get done… I ‘get to’ train hard and push myself to the breaking point. I ‘get to’ get my ass kicked and come back stronger. I ‘get to’ be the hardest worker in the fucking room. Because when you ‘get to’ do the things you love – it’s a privilege.”
This mindset of ‘I get to’ helped Johnson to remain grateful for all the opportunities that came his way. He has sustained in a highly fluctuating industry with serious competition coming in every day.
The Rock took a swing at the legendary action star
When The Rock was transforming for his role in Hercules he wanted to bring on screen a body no one has ever seen before. Conflict arose when DJ was asked if his plans to be the best include beating Arnold Schwarzenegger as Conan. The Rock replied without hesitation,
“Yes. And I mean that with all due respect by the way. When you look at some of the guys in the past, especially the guys who come from bodybuilding backgrounds, athletic backgrounds—like Arnold, Steve Reeves, like Reg Park and certainly like Stallone—men who had a bodybuilding history or incorporated bodybuilding workouts, they looked incredible. So I mean that with all due respect to those guys, because a lot of those guys are my friends, like Arnold and Stallone for example.”
Despite the intent to beat the greats in the business, DJ expressed his appreciation for Schwarzenegger. So there truly isn’t any feud there; Johnson was merely confident in his performance as Hercules.
It appears that during the 2010s, Arnold Schwarzenegger passed the mantle to Dwyane Johnson. Few performers pull in as much money at the box office for the action genre as The Rock, and he now seems to be the biggest action star in the world.
Hercules is streaming on Apple TV.
Source: MensHealth
