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Dwayne Johnson reveals he once fired agent who doubted he could surpass Will Smith's success

Home> Celebrity> News

Published 21:03 14 Nov 2024 GMT

Dwayne Johnson reveals he once fired agent who doubted he could surpass Will Smith's success

The wrestler-turned-actor is currently the richest actor on the planet and he's got to that point by backing himself

Joe Yates

Joe Yates

There's a reason The Rock has gotten to where he is now - he has dreams and he has the willpower to achieve them.

Dwayne Johnson first took to the wrestling ring in 1996 and eight years later he left WWE for a good while, as he was too caught up in filming - debuting on the big screen for The Mummy Returns back in 2001.

Having rose to fame as his alter ego The Rock, becoming an instant fan favorite, he knew what he wanted and he knew how to get there - take his 'no lose' contract clause, for instance.

I'll quickly explain the clause, as it's written into every movie contract he signs.

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It is reported how he can't ever lose a fight on screen, or even be seen to take too much punishment in his many on screen fights.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Vin Diesel was the first to have such a clause in the Fast and Furious franchise.

Vin Diesel had reportedly developed a system where he assigned a numerical value to each blow he receiving on screen.

These were meticulously counted up by a producer, his younger sister, to make sure that the rules of the contract were being followed.

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Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is currently one of the richest actors on the planet (Santiago Felipe/FilmMagic)
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is currently one of the richest actors on the planet (Santiago Felipe/FilmMagic)

Johnson and Statham saw this system and had a similar clause added into their contracts.

Anyway, let's get back onto how Dwayne Johnson has become that famous he doesn't need to use his alter ego The Rock to score films.

If you've been to the cinema at any point in the last five years, whether you've been once, twice or 100 times - you'll have seen the 52-year-old starring in a blockbuster.

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He is a household name and you could even argue that he's more well-known than Brad Pitt or Leonardo DiCaprio - which is proof that he did the right thing in firing his own agent who doubted he could surpass Will Smith's success.

Johnson always dreamt of being a bigger household name than Will Smith - and I think he may have done it (Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for MTV)
Johnson always dreamt of being a bigger household name than Will Smith - and I think he may have done it (Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for MTV)

In a recent interview with GQ, he spoke about his change of career, from wrestler to global superstar, and around 2002 he 'noted who was at the top'.

The publication writes: “He went to his agents and said, despite whatever recent setbacks he’d experienced, he had an idea, or simply an ambition: He wanted to have the career of George Clooney or Will Smith.

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"But bigger, perhaps, or better. When his agents seemed sceptical of this plan, he found new agents."

Yes, Johnson had that much self-belief that he fired his manager because he knew he couldn't get there with doubters - and he is now one of the richest actors on the planet.

Featured Image Credit: Jason Merritt/Getty Images / Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images

Topics: Dwayne Johnson, WWE, Fast and Furious, Vin Diesel, Hollywood, Celebrity

Joe Yates
Joe Yates

Joe is a journalist for UNILAD, who particularly enjoys writing about crime. He has worked in journalism for five years, and has covered everything from murder trials to celeb news.

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@JMYjourno

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