Dwayne Johnson was told to be more like Clooney and Depp when entering Hollywood

Last Updated on October 20, 2022

With DC’s Black Adam gearing up for its debut later this month, Dwayne Johnson is on the promotional circuit. On a recent trip to Good Morning America, Johnson revealed that he got some rather suspect advice if he wanted to make it big in Hollywood. Chiefly, don’t be big.

Dwayne Johnson recalled he had numerous people telling him, “‘Well you can do it like this, you have to do it like that.’ For example, when I first got to Hollywood, many moons ago I was told–out of the world of pro wrestling…‘Well, if you wanna make it if you want to be a star’ — the biggest stars at that time were George Clooney and Johnny Depp and Will Smith.”

Johnson would also have to try to refrain from his pro wrestling nickname, The Rock, saying he was told, “‘Don’t talk about pro wrestling. You gotta lose weight, go on a diet, you’re too big, don’t go to the gym as much.’”

Dwayne Johnson, of course, didn’t take this advice too seriously, instead opting to be the guy that could bench Clooney, Depp and Smith. (You can see his wild workout routine here.)

Dwayne Johnson has fared well since his emergence as a movie star both in Hollywood and in the squared circle. He has been a consistent silver screen presence since his 2001 The Mummy Returns debut, with a range that includes Disney animated movies (Moana), vroom vroom franchises (The Fast and the Furious) and, yes, superhero movies. He has also won the WWE world championship twice since then. Nice try winning the belt with your finishing move The Slap, Will Smith!

Black Adam is getting some fairly mid-level reviews but will likely be a major box office win for DC.

Black Adam hits theaters on October 21st.

Do you smell what The Rock is cookin’? Let us know in the comments below!