Dwayne Johnson reveals how late father Rocky ‘completely crossed the line’ before their final conversation
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has spoken out about his relationship with his late father, and one moment that ‘hurt’ his heart.
The actor has been quiet about the relationship between himself and his dad but has revealed that it was complex.
For those unaware, Dwayne Johnson's family holds generations of prestigious wrestling heritage.
The third-generation wrestler's Anoa'i family has Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka, Rikishi, Yokozuna and, Roman Reigns, the Usos, and Nia Jax in its fold.
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Taking it back even further, Johnson's grandfather was 'High Chief' Peter Maivia, who won titles in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) territories, and joined the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF), aka WWE.
Johnson's own father was 'Soul Man' Rocky Johnson, a superstar in the WWE, and was even the one-half of the first Black world tag team champions, paired with Tony Atlas.
Rocky sadly passed away in January 2020 at the age of 75 due to a pulmonary embolism while at home in the house Dwayne bought for him in Lutz, Florida.
As for how he and Rocky lived growing up, it was tumultuous.
His father, being a wrestling legend, was gone a lot - and when he was home, he and Dwayne’s mother could have such explosive arguments that they lived separately at times.
But what became the hardest part for Dwayne, was when he had to live with one of his parents full-time.
He told The New York Times: “The worst pain I’ve ever felt...The worst pain I’ve ever felt was when we were evicted from Hawaii and I was sent to Nashville to live with my dad.”
The 53-year-old recalled his memories of his father, particularly arguing over his father’s memoir.
He explained the book contained quotes that appeared to give his father credit for his renowned success.
“It hurts,” he said.
The book, Soulman: The Rocky Johnson Story, shocked Dwayne, as it claimed he had written the foreword of the book - which he hadn’t.
“It just completely crossed the line,” Johnson said. “It goes back to the attention, the narcissism.”
He went on to recall the 2019 blowup, which was the biggest fight he’d ever had with his father since he told him he wanted to be a wrestler 25 years earlier.
Rocky Johnson supposedly said his son at the time: “What do you think you possibly have to offer?”
When Dwayne went to live with his father, who had an apartment in Nashville, he was instead greeted by a man named Bob who took him to a motel, where he met Bruno.
He was told this was where he would live, and he learned his father was living with another woman.
Sadly, his mother also found out when she drove to meet them.
“My heart hurts when I think about that,” Johnson said. “The pain that my mom was driving with: Like ‘What is my life now? That whole time?’”
That’s when he learned to think of himself as the man in his mother’s life, and had to pull her back from oncoming traffic when she learned of her husband’s affair.
As for what else was in his dad’s memoir, he says it was tales.
“Growing up with my dad, I know the truth to all these stories. And they’re not in this book. If the truth is blue, this story is red,” he explained.
At one point, he managed to get the book removed from bookstore shelves.
As for how he remembers him, he said: “Wildly enough, my old man was just this amazing friend. Complicated husband. Complicated dad. But an awesome friend to everyone else.”
But he was no friend to Dwayne, as he said: “I wish. I think that my mom was my friend.”
Topics: Dwayne Johnson, WWE, Celebrity
Britt Jones