When Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's name is spoken, images of a powerful,
nearly unbreakable, and tough guy immediately come to mind. But like
everyone else, Dwayne has a vulnerable side sometimes, especially when it
comes to his father.
People saw Dwayne's father Rocky Johnson's vulnerable side for the first
time at his eulogy when he passed away in 2020. Before his tragic death, he
confessed his biggest regret at that moment. "I wish I could have just one
more chance to say good-bye, I love you, thank you, and I respect you. But
I'm sure he's both watching and listening."
In an interview with Vanity Fair published in October 2021, Dwayne revealed
details about his private life while discussing his difficult connection
with his father. Their bond as father and son became stronger over time. But
it wasn't simple. Dwayne mentioned how, as a child, he looked up to his
father.
Ironically, he continued, "I f***ing admired my dad as a boy." "Man, I
worshipped him. Naturally, with time, that idealization began to fade. But
as I grew older and had more life experience, I was able to appreciate his
love for me in that constrained way more, he added.
And then January 15, 2020, arrived. Dwayne had a gloomy day because his
father had gone away that day. On the first day of "Red Notice" production
in Atlanta, as he was getting off the interstate exit, he learned of his
father's demise. Upon entering the stage, everyone in his immediate vicinity
was beaming. In contrast to how everyone else was experiencing, he
experienced the opposite.
To to Dwayne, "I was simply numb." "I spent approximately ten minutes
sitting in my pickup. And I was ignorant. I was attempting to decide what to
do next. Will I call my mother? Is my wife on the phone? Is my dad's wife
her number?" he continued.
He chose to go to work rather than return home because he was reminded of
his father's adage, "The show must go on."
Dwayne and his father argued a few weeks before to his father's passing. At
this point, his father had just written a biography titled "Soulman: The
Rocky Johnson Story." Dwayne said that his father had informed him of his
intentions to publish a book and that he was "all for it."
But he did have one straightforward request for him. "I was a supporter of
it. I just asked him, "My only request is that you be true, open, honest,
and frank with what you want to say, and that you be mindful about what you
say," months in advance.
The book wasn't sent to Dwayne until after it was released. When he had
finished reading it, he couldn't help but feel disappointed and upset
because "So much of it, was not real," he told Vanity Fair.
Apart from his father's claim that they were kicked out of their Hawaii
home when he was 14 years old, Dwayne was particularly confused by the
"Foreword by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, "which was written on the book's
cover. He was enraged by the idea that his father had made everything up.
That's correct, contrary to what was said, Dwayne did not write the
foreword.
The Hollywood actor discussed how his father's career purportedly predicted
his in the preface part of the book that his father claimed Dwayne had
authored. The statement said, "My dad was far more successful than I was,
and over a significantly longer length of time."
The phrase that most enraged him? Everything I've accomplished in
professional wrestling, movies, TV programs, and other commercial chances is
because to Rocky Johnson.
And so, as Christmastime arrived, the father and son began to argue. Dwayne
acknowledged, "We got into a big fight. He did not reread what his
ghostwriter reportedly wrote in the book, which is in his father's defense.
His father said he was unaware there was an introduction. However, the
ghostwriter, Scott Teal, admitted on a podcast that Rocky had given him
writing instructions, which had helped him.
"In the same interview with Vanity Fair, he claimed, "It was the largest
argument we've ever had, and we had been into some doozies in the past. I
had leaned into my dad more than I ever had since I was so upset and
disappointed.
He was unaware, however, that it would be the final opportunity he would
ever get to talk with his father.
We had some enjoyable occasions, he remarked. "We had several challenges.
We occasionally fought. And my father was always aware that some aspects of
his life were messed up. We eventually had some quite frank discussions
about who he was and who he had always wanted me to be away from the
cacophony, he said.
Tags:
celebrity