Whether you know Dwayne Johnson as the action/adventure hero from movies like Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle or the Fast & Furious franchise, the voice of the family friendly demigod on Moana or the professional wrestler telling WWE fans to “shut their mouths and enjoy the ride,” the point is you know who he is. The Rock has got to be one of the most recognizable celebrities to fans of all ages and interests, so one has to wonder if he ever gets tired of it all. Johnson apparently gets that question a lot, and he explained why he never takes his fame for granted.
Dwayne Johnson is set to pop up on the 2025 movie calendar in the A24 movie The Smashing Machine, and we’re likely to smell what The Rock is cooking at more upcoming WWE events as well. It may seem like fans can’t escape him, but the bigger question may be can he escape the fans? Does he ever want to? In a conversation with Complex, Johnson was asked if he remembered what it felt like to not be famous, and the actor said the question reminded him of one he often gets, and he responded:
They say, ‘Do you ever get tired of it?’ Tired of you can’t go out, everything is back door, through the kitchen, nothing is in through the front door, hotels, it doesn’t matter. Everything is a set up, everything is you gotta call ahead. And you can’t go anywhere, like malls and walks. That’s not in my cards anymore, and they say, ‘Do you get tired of that?’ And I went, ‘No, never.’
As hard as it might be to feel sorry for one of Hollywood’s highest-paid actors, it’s at least worth remembering that level of fame means Dwayne Johnson has zero anonymity and therefore little room for spontaneity. He can’t just take his family out to eat on a whim or go anywhere he wants at the drop of a hat. Everything’s got to be scheduled and planned for.
Not that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is asking for pity. He fought for his rise to fame, and today knows exactly how lucky he is to have that much influence. So no, he never gets tired of it. He continued:
It’s true, because the alternative is going back to those days… where I wasn’t famous and no one cared. No one gave a shit. Not that my thought was, ‘Oh, I want people to care.’ It’s just at that time, that reminds me of a time where things were hard and I didn’t have any money, and I don’t want to go back to that.
How true it is that life is easier when you have money and people care about what you have to say. The fact that Dwayne Johnson wasn’t always so fortunate likely makes it easier for him to remember that not everyone is that lucky.
Keep your eye out for The Rock in multiple upcoming projects like the live-action remake of Moana, and to see if he’ll throw a wrench in those WrestleMania 41 main event plans. Either way, I’m not worried about having to wait too long to see where this super famous celeb pops up next.