Dwayne Johnson Reflects on BLACK ADAM and Suggests He Left the DC Universe Completely
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s Black Adam was supposed to change the “hierarchy of power in the DC Universe.” What we didn’t realize was that the former professional wrestler was referring to his plan to buy the brand.
Johnson intended to build the DC Universe around the Black Adam franchise, enlisting Henry Cavill to return as Superman for a “Black Adam vs. Superman” crossover. However, his solo film garnered negative reviews and only grossed $393.5 million at the worldwide box office.
The actor attempted damage control by sharing profitability claims with Deadline and then attempted to convince fans of his vision by announcing a Falcon movie. Ultimately, Warner Bros. Discovery felt differently and DC Studios was formed…and one of the first things James Gunn and Peter Safran did was cut ties with The Rock (although they hinted they might work together in the future).
While speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Johnson reflected on his Black Adam experience and seemed to suggest he was done with DC at this point in his career.
“Not only did I feel like a heel in the wrestling ring, but it was almost like the anti-hero that the Rock ultimately became,” he shared. “I loved doing Black Adam. We had a great time. I loved creating these characters and introducing other characters into this universe as well.”
“I had a great time” » Johnson added. “I wish good luck to this universe. And to the others.” Since it’s been more than three years Black Adam is out, that’s not too surprising, and the Final Boss, as he’s known in WWE, is looking to be taken more seriously in Hollywood.
However, his Oscar hopes recently took a major blow when The smashing machine a failure at the box office. Reviews of Johnson’s work have been positive, although not as flattering as those usually seen for an Oscar nominee. Still, he’s not too concerned that it only made $20 million on a $50 million budget.
“Smashing Machine has completely changed my life in a way that I hadn’t anticipated, because of what it represents. It represents, to me, listening to your gut, your instinct, that little voice. Sometimes in life you think you’re capable of something, but you don’t really know it. And sometimes it takes people around you to say, ‘Come on, you could do it.'” Smashing Machine also represents a turning point in my career that I’ve wanted for a long time: for first time in my career – over 20 years since The Scorpion King came out – I made a film to challenge myself and really tear myself apart and go somewhere else to disappear and transform myself.
“Even though we didn’t do well [at the box office]or as good as we wanted it to be, it was good because it simply represented what I had done for myself. Maybe it was because I was an only child, but all the things I had experienced as a child and teenager – the deportation, my mother tried to kill herself two months after we were deported and I pulled her out of the middle of the highway, a whole bunch of things happened – I had refused to explore all of that on film. For years, I would do these other movies that were big and fun, Jumanji and Moana, with happy endings, and I still love that. But what it represented was, “Oh, wait, I can do what I love, which is tell stories, but I could also take all of this and have a place to put it.” »
Would you like to see Johnson return to the DCU as Black Adam?
