Dwayne Johnson is one of the biggest names in Hollywood, but could that all come crashing down after another damning report has been made regarding the wrestler turned actor.
From his beginnings as a WWF (now WWE) wrestler, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has become one of the most recognizable names in the entertainment industry. His early roles in The Mummy Returns (2001) and later in The Scorpion King (2002) alongside Brendan Fraser (Rick O’Connell) showed the world that the global wrestling icon had acting chops.
Fast-forward to 2023, and Johnson has starred in a variety of blockbuster movies. From his role as Luke Hobbs in the Fast & Furious franchise to other action films like Hercules (2014), San Andreas (2015), Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017), Rampage (2018), Skyscraper (2018), and most recently, Black Adam (2022), Johnson is a movie powerhouse and one of the most commercial actors of the modern age. Back in 2016, the actor lent his vocal talents to The Walt Disney Company, starring in Moana (2016) as demigod Maui, before returning to the company to star as Frank Wolff in Jungle Cruise (2021) with Emily Blunt (Lily Houghton).
And while Johnson is a huge name, and a name alone that will bring people into movie theaters, the last few months have been rough. Touted as the savior of the DC Extended Universe, Johnson’s Black Adam opened to less than favorable reviews and responses from fans. Jaume Collet-Serra’s DC movie brought in around $393 million at the global box office. The amount of profit the DC film made is one of contention. At first, it was claimed that Black Adam would make a startlingly big loss; another report found that Johnson’s movie would make a small profit.
But then it was claimed that Johnson and his team released incorrect financial information to the press. Puck shared that the figures released showed Black Adam turning $52 to $72 million in profit with all factors (Home media release, for example) taken into account. They also went on to say that the $100 million marketing budget was incorrect and misleading.
Now, in a new damning report, it is alleged that Johnson and his Black Adam machine also tanked the Shazam! (2019) sequel, Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023).
Dwayne Johnson center of damning report.The second outing for Zachary Levi’s Shazam was released in movie theaters earlier this month. And it would be another lukewarm reception for Warner Bros. Discovery and DC Studios as Shazam! Fury of the Gods opened with a low $65 million global weekend box office. This is far lower than even the first Shazam! movie and both cast and crew, including director David F. Sandberg and actress Rachel Zegler have hit back at critics — the former even went on to say he would now be stepping away from making superhero movies.
And it seems, at least according to this new announcement, that Dwayne Johnson is to blame for the Shazam! sequel flop, as well as his own Black Adam.
It is known that Johnson allegedly did some behind-the-scenes manoeuvering regarding the characters which could appear in Black Adam, allegedly vetoing a Shazam cameo in the DCEU movie. It seems this could be what is to blame for the tepid response to Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
According to The Wrap (via Heroic Hollywood), Black Adam was set to include the full lineup of the Justice Society of America, including Aldis Hodge’s Hawkman and Shazam. The idea was not backed by Johnson and insiders claim it is due to Johnson not wanting to be overshadowed by other stars or surprises in his movie
The Wrap (via Comic Book Movie) goes on to say that one insider stated that “Dwayne tries to sell himself as bigger than the movie.” Adding that “He’s one of the few people who always thinks he’s the most important person in any situation or room [and] instead of making a movie, he wants to extend his brand and make a brand centered on himself.”
The report concludes that in Johnson “refusing to integrate with other established characters, [he] systematically crippled two franchises, and has harmed DC in the process.”
Credit: Warner Bros.
It is this alleged brand-building in favor of good cinematic storytelling this is the basis that Johnson ruined not only his own DC franchise but Shazam!‘s also. Don’t forget that Johnson confessed to having “years of strategic conversations” surrounding the return of Henry Cavill’s Clark Kent/Superman, which DC Studios had formerly said would never happen. Cavill did return in the post-credits of Black Adam, and Cavill did announce his return to DC as Superman, only for new joint DC Studios CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran to rescind that offer, opting to reboot the DCEU with the interconnected DC Universe.
Continued reports of Johnson’s behind-the-scenes antics and their public nature may hurt the actor’s chances to lead more blockbuster franchises. On the docket for this year is the action-adventure Christmas movie Red One (2023), which will star Johnson as Callum Drift and Chris Evans as Jack O’Malley. Red One will be released exclusively on Amazon Prime.
DCU and the future.Gunn and Safran announced in January their first round of projects for “Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters”, which includes the Superman reboot, Superman: Legacy (2025), written and directed by Gunn himself. The slate reveal came months after Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav famously trashed Batgirl when it was near completion.
Next up for DC Studios is the highly-anticipated (yet completely controversial, thanks to star Ezra Miller) The Flash (2023). Andy Muschietti’s movie is tapped to be the “reset” for the DCEU and has received extremely favorable reviews in test screenings.
Do you think Dwayne Johnson’s reported brand-building hurt DC Studios? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!
Soucre: insidethemagic.net
