Dwayne Johnson, who was recently seen in Black Adam, has become one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. He has starred in many blockbuster films like Fast and Furious, and the actor is famously known for his work ethic and being The Rock in general. But once on the show, Watch What Happens Live, the actor refused to answer a certain question.
Dwayne Johnson in Black AdamDwayne Johnson got uncomfortable when asked about Vin Diesel
Dwayne Johnson in Fast and Furious
The show host, Abdy Cohen, has a special round where he purposefully asks questions that make the guests uncomfortable. This time around the host succeeded completely as The Rock immediately got uncomfortable when he was asked about his relationship with Vin Diesel.
Johnson is not a part of a lot of controversies, he makes headlines with his work and is focused, funny, and good looking. However, sometimes Johnson has also had to put his foot down. While he was on set filming The Fast And The Furious, things got sour between him and his co-star, Vin Diesel. Andy Cohen asked him,
“In 2016 you allegedly called Vin Diesel a candy a**, an unprofessional on Instagram, and didn’t film any scenes together on ‘The Fate And The Furious. What was the most unprofessional behavior you witnessed from Vin on set and will you ever film a scene with him again?“
Johbson could answer this question or ‘plead the fifth’, and he ended up doing the latter. The Rock got uncomfortable, but took the question with a smile and said “I would plead the fifth”
Dwayne Johnson called Vin Diesel candya**es
Dwayne Johnson, Vin Diesel in Fast and Furious
On the sets of The Fast And The Furious, things got heated between Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel. The Rock took to Instagram to let out some anger, and wrote,
“My female co-stars are always amazing and I love ’em. My male co-stars however are a different story. Some conduct themselves as stand-up men and true professionals, while others don’t. The ones that don’t are too chicken s**t to do anything about it anyway. Candy a**es. When you watch this movie next April and it seems like I’m not acting in some of these scenes and my blood is legit boiling—you’re right.”
Fans were confused but could smell conflict from this post, it did not reveal much, but enough to call out fire. The actor deleted the post very quickly but the internet never forgets, it caused a storm and got viral. People all around were talking about it, and later Johnson revealed that his co-stars and crew were happy he did that, and they were silently grateful to him. Speaking to Vanity Fair, the actor explained how much it meant to him, and even though it was unprofessional he does not regret it.
“It caused a firestorm. Yet interestingly enough…[it was] as if every single crew member found their way to me and either quietly thanked me or sent me a note. But, yeah, it wasn’t my best day, sharing that. I shouldn’t have shared that. Because at the end of the day, that goes against my DNA. I don’t share things like that. And I take care of that kind of bulls**t away from the public,”
Vin Diesel’s tough love approach did not sit well
Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel in Fast and Furious
When Vin Diesel was asked about his side of the story, he said it was more of tough love and that he had to take on that role because he was producing something. It was his name, after all. Even though the star agreed that he was harsh, he does not think it was unjustified. He tried to clear the air when asked about it by Men’s Health, saying,
“It was a tough character to embody, the Hobbs character. My approach at the time was a lot of tough love to assist in getting that performance where it needed to be. As a producer to say, ‘Okay, we’re going to take Dwayne Johnson, who’s associated with wrestling, and we’re going to force this cinematic world, audience members, to regard his character as someone that they don’t know’ – Hobbs hits you like a ton of bricks. That’s something that I’m proud of, that aesthetic. That took a lot of work. We had to get there and sometimes, at that time, I could give a lot of tough love. Not Felliniesque, but I would do anything I’d have to do to get performances in anything I’m producing“
The Rock did not shy away from telling his truth, either. He did not get swayed by tough love, instead he stood his ground and explained how what he did was something he had to do, it was unprofessional but important nonetheless. He responded to the comment made by Vin Diesel by emphasizing their differences. He shared how his background is entirely different than Diesel’s, yet he too has been doing movies and has gathered some experience.
“One part of me feels like there’s no way I would dignify any of that bulls**t with an answer. But here’s the truth. I’ve been around the block a lot of times. Unlike him, I did not come from the world of theater. And, you know, I came up differently and was raised differently. And I came from a completely different culture and environment. And I go into every project giving it my all. And if I feel that there are some things that need to be squared away and handled and taken care of, then I do it. And it’s just that simple. So when I read that, just like everybody else, I laughed. I laughed hard. We all laughed.”
