Dwayne Johnson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dwayne Johnson
Johnson in 2023
Born	Dwayne Douglas Johnson (1972-05-02) May 2, 1972 (age 53) Hayward, California, U.S.
Education	University of Miami (BGS)
Occupation	Actor professional wrestler film producer businessman
Years active	1996–2004 2011–2019 2023–present (wrestling) 1999–present (acting) 2000; 2021–present (rapping)
Works	Filmography
Spouse(s)	Dany Garcia ​ ​ (m. 1997; div. 2008)​ Lauren Hashian ​ (m. 2019)​
Children	3, including Simone
Parent(s)	Rocky Johnson (father)
Relatives	Anoaʻi family
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Flex Kavana Rocky Maivia The Rock
Billed height	6 ft 5 in (196 cm)
Billed weight	260 lb (118 kg)
Billed from	Miami, Florida, U.S.
Trained by	Pat Patterson Rocky Johnson Tom Prichard
Debut	March 10, 1996
Signature

Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor and former professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time.

Early life

Johnson was born in Hayward, California on May 2, 1972. His parents are Ata Johnson (née Maivia; born 1948) and former professional wrestler Rocky Johnson (born Wayde Douglas Bowles; 1944–2020). Johnson's father was a Black Nova Scotian with a small amount of Irish ancestry. His mother is Samoan.

Johnson lived briefly in Grey Lynn in Auckland, New Zealand with his mother's family, where he played rugby and attended Richmond Road Primary School before returning to the U.S.

Johnson attended Montclaire Elementary School in Charlotte, North Carolina before moving to Hamden, Connecticut, where he attended Shepherd Glen Elementary School and then Hamden Middle School. Johnson attended President William McKinley High School in Honolulu and then Glencliff High School and McGavock High School, both in Nashville, and then Freedom High School in Bethlehem Township in the Lehigh Valley, where he graduated in 1990.

At Freedom High School in the Lehigh Valley, Johnson was drawn into a culture of conflict and was described as a "a troubled teenager". Before the age of 17, he was arrested multiple times for fighting, theft, and check fraud and was suspended two weeks for fighting.

Sport as a game-changer

Freedom High School football coach Jody Cwik saw athletic potential in Johnson, and recruited him to join Freedom's football team. Johnson played defensive tackle. The experience proved the beginning of a personal transformation for Johnson.

In addition to playing football at Freedom High School, Johnson also was a member of the school's track and field and wrestling teams. Like the school's football team, its track and field and wrestling teams competed in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference (EPC), a high school athletic conference known for being among the nation's best. Johnson quickly found himself facing some of the nation's most accomplished high school wrestlers.

College football recruiters ranked Johnson as one of the top ten high school defensive tackles in the nation. He opted to accept a full athletic scholarship offer from the University of Miami, whose football program was then one of the best in the nation.

College years

As a college freshman, he was a member of the University of Miami's 1991 national championship team, but largely spent his four college football years at the University of Miami in backup roles behind elite players

Johnson aspired to play professional football but went undrafted in the 1995 NFL Draft. Following his graduation from the University of Miami that year, he signed with the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League. However, he was cut from the team in his first season.

Taking up wrestling

Almost all his family was in wrestling. His father and Tony Atlas were the first black tag team champions in WWE history, in 1983. His mother is the adopted daughter of Peter Maivia, who was also a professional wrestler. Johnson's maternal grandmother Lia was the one of the first female pro wrestling promoters, taking over Polynesian Pacific Pro Wrestling after her husband's death in 1982 and managing it until 1988.

In 1996, Johnson's father Rocky, a longtime professional wrestler, assisted in helping him secure a contract with the WWF. Johnson quickly rose to global prominence.

Johnson made his WWF debut as Rocky Maivia, a combination of his father and grandfather's ring names. He did not want to take this ring name but was persuaded by Vince McMahon and Jim Ross. Later, he was given the nickname "The Blue Chipper". In 1997, he began to refer to himself in the third person as The Rock.

Johnson left WWE in 2004 and returned in 2011 as a part-time performer until retiring in 2019. He has since made several sporadic appearances.

Dwayne Johnson's WWE Titles:

• He is a 10-time world champion
• a two-time Intercontinental Champion,
• a five-time Tag Team Champion,
• the 2000 Royal Rumble winner,
• and WWE's sixth Triple Crown champion.

Johnson headlined the most-bought professional wrestling pay-per-view (WrestleMania XXVIII) and was featured among the most watched episodes of WWE's flagship television series (Raw and SmackDown).

Acting career and filmography

Johnson's first film appearance was in The Mummy Returns (2001). The following year he played his first leading role as the titular character in the sword and sorcery action fantasy film The Scorpion King (2002).

He has since starred in family films, action movies, adventures and comedies. His filmography includes:

• The Game Plan (2007)
• Race to Witch Mountain (2009)
• Tooth Fairy (2010)
• Jungle Cruise (2021)
• Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (2012)
• G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)
• Hercules (2014)
• Skyscraper (2018)
• San Andreas (2015)
• Rampage (2018)
• Get Smart (2008)
• Central Intelligence (2016)
• Baywatch (2017)
• Red Notice (2021)
• Fast Five (2011)
• Hobbs & Shaw (2019)
• Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
• Jumanji: The Next Level (2019)
• DC League of Super-Pets (2022) (as Bark Kent / Krypto / Superdog, Anubis, and Teth-Adam / Black Adam, voice)
• Black Adam (2022)
• Red One (2024).

In 2012, Johnson founded his production company Seven Bucks Productions. Johnson is also pursing a singing career.

Upcoming projects

Johnson will next portray former MMA fighter Mark Kerr in biographical sports drama The Smashing Machine (2025), and will portray Maui again in the live action adaptation Moana (2026). In February 2025, Johnson was cast in a crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese, alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Emily Blunt.

Personal life

Johnson first met fellow University of Miami student Dany Garcia in the early 1990s. The couple married on May 3, 1997. She is a businesswoman, IFBB professional bodybuilder, and producer. Their daughter, Simone, was born on August 14, 2001. On June 1, 2007, Johnson and Garcia announced they were separating amicably, and their divorce was finalized in May 2008.

In 2007, Johnson began dating Lauren Hashian, the daughter of Boston drummer Sib Hashian. They first met in 2006 while Johnson was filming The Game Plan. They were married on August 18, 2019, in Hawaii. They have two daughters: Jasmine (born December 17, 2015) and Tiana (born April 17, 2018). Johnson and Hashian live in Los Angeles, have a farm in Virginia, and a home in Southwest Ranches, Florida.

In February 2020, WWE announced that Johnson's daughter Simone began training at the WWE Performance Center, making her the first fourth-generation WWE wrestler. On May 16, Johnson announced she had signed a contract with WWE, and in May 2022 announced that her ring name would be Ava Raine, and has since been appearing on the NXT brand.

Philanthropy

In 2006, Johnson founded the Dwayne Johnson Rock Foundation, a charity working with at-risk and terminally ill children. On October 2, 2007, he and his then wife, Dany Garcia, donated $1 million to the University of Miami to support the renovation of its football facilities. The university renamed the Hurricanes' locker room in Johnson's honor. In 2015, Johnson donated $1,500 to a GoFundMe to pay for an abandoned dog's surgery. In 2017, he donated $25,000 to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts. In 2018, Johnson donated a gym to a military base in Oahu, Hawaii. After the 2018 Hawaii floods, he worked with Malama Kauai, a nonprofit organization, to help repair flood damage. Johnson has also worked with Make-A-Wish Foundation on a number of occasions.

In July 2023, Johnson made a seven-figure donation to the SAG-AFTRA Foundation during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, which foundation president Courtney B. Vance cited to be "the largest single donation that (the foundation) has ever received from one individual at one time".

Interesting facts about Dwayne Johnson

• He is one of the world's highest-grossing and highest-paid actors. His films have grossed over $3.5 billion in North America and over $10.5 billion worldwide.
• Johnson wrestled for the WWF for eight years prior to pursuing an acting career.
• In 2000, Johnson published his autobiography, titled The Rock Says..., which he co-wrote with Joe Layden. It debuted at No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list and remained on the list for several weeks.
• Through his maternal grandfather Maivia, Johnson is a non-blood relative to the Anoa'i wrestling family.
• In recognition of his service to the Samoan people, and because he is a descendant of Samoan chiefs, Johnson was given the noble title of Seiuli (meaning the son of Malietoa [Alo o Malietoa]) by Malietoa Tanumafili II during his visit there on August 9, 2004.
• In 2009, he gained Canadian citizenship through his father's birth and citizenship there.
• In 2006, Johnson founded the Dwayne Johnson Rock Foundation, a charity working with at-risk and terminally ill children.
• In 2008, Johnson inducted his father and grandfather into the WWE Hall of Fame.
• The University of Miami renamed the Hurricanes' locker room in Johnson's honor.
• Johnson produced and starred in the HBO comedy-drama series Ballers (2015–2019), and the autobiographical sitcom Young Rock (2021).
• In 2000, Johnson released his autobiography, The Rock Says, which was a New York Times bestseller.
• In 2012, he co-founded the entertainment production company Seven Bucks Productions, and is co-owner of the XFL, a professional American football league.
• In 2016 and 2019, Time named Johnson one of the world's most influential people.
• In 2016, Johnson started his YouTube channel.
• In 2016 he voiced Maui in the Disney animated film Moana (2016).
• In 2021, his biographical comedy-drama series Young Rock began airing on NBC.
• He got a partial Samoan pe'a tattoo on his left side in 2003. In 2017, he had the small "Brahma bull" tattoo on his right arm covered with a larger half-sleeve tattoo of a bull's skull.
• Johnson is a fan of the rapper Tech N9ne. He featured on a song titled "Face Off" on the rapper's 2021 album Asin9ne.
• He has confessed that he can eat two large pizzas and a tray of brownies in one sitting.
• As of November 2021^[update], his Instagram account is the fourth most-followed in the world, with over 280 million followers.

Dwayne Johnson quotes

• "The single most powerful thing I can be is to be myself."
• "Success isn't always about greatness. It's about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come."
• "Life is anything but predictable."
• "With drive and a bit of talent, you can move mountains. I know. I've done it."
• "I'm always asked, 'What's the secret to success?' But there are no secrets. Be humble. Be hungry. And always be the hardest worker in the room."
• "Around every corner, always protect the engine that powers you."
• "We do today what they won’t, so tomorrow we accomplish what they can’t."

Discography

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Championships and accomplishments

The Rock in Nashville during his eighth and to date last WWE Championship reign, February 2013

The Rock at Mayhem in Manchester in Manchester, England, during one of his two Intercontinental Championship reigns, April 1998

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • Match of the Year (1999) vs. Mankind in an "I Quit" match at Royal Rumble
  • Match of the Year (2002) vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania X8
  • Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (1999, 2000)
  • Wrestler of the Year (2000)
  • Ranked No. 2 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2000
• United States Wrestling Association
  • USWA World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Bart Sawyer
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Best Box Office Draw (2000, 2011, 2012)
  • Best Gimmick (1999)
  • Best on Interviews (1999, 2000)
  • Most Charismatic (1999–2002, 2011, 2012)
  • Most Improved (1998)
  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2007)
• WWE/World Wrestling Entertainment/Federation
  • WWE Championship (8 times)
  • WCW Championship (2 times)
  • WWF Intercontinental Championship (2 times)
  • WWF Tag Team Championship (5 times) – with Mankind (3), The Undertaker (1), and Chris Jericho (1)
  • Royal Rumble (2000)
  • Sixth Triple Crown Champion
  • Deadly Games WWF Championship Tournament (1998)
  • Slammy Award (10 times)
    • Best Actor (2014)
    • Game Changer of the Year (2011) – with John Cena
    • Guess Who's Back or: Return of the Year (2011)
    • LOL! Moment of the Year (2012, 2013) – insulting John Cena using the history of Boston, Massachusetts, Rock Concert on the 20th anniversary episode of Raw
    • Match of the Year (2013) – vs. John Cena for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 29
    • New Sensation (1997)
    • "This is Awesome" Moment of the Year (2015) – with Ronda Rousey
    • Trash Talker of the Year (2024)

Awards and honors

Images for kids

• 

  As part of The Corporation, the Rock feuded with Stone Cold Steve Austin and stole Austin's personalized WWF Championship and his "Smoking Skull" belt.

• 

  The Rock's popularity was fueled by his charisma and speaking abilities, which led to many catchphrases and merchandising opportunities.

• 

  The Rock as the WWF Champion in 2000

• 

  The Rock taunting an opponent at ringside at WWF Raw, October 2001

• 

  The Rock doing his signature pose before wrestling Hulk Hogan (bottom right) at WrestleMania X8, March 2002

• 

  The Rock defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin (left) in Austin's final match at WrestleMania XIX in March 2003.

• 

  The Rock in the ring as WrestleMania XXVII host, April 2011

• 

  The Rock and John Cena (left) on Raw, agreeing to a match at WrestleMania XXVIII one year in advance

• 

  The Rock celebrating his victory at WrestleMania XXVIII, April 2012

• 

  The Rock revealing the brand new WWE Championship design on WWE Raw, February 2013

• 

  The Rock (right) confronts Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania XXX, April 2014.

• 

  The Rock in a 2001 Vanity Fair photo shoot

• 

  Johnson at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City, April 2009

See also

In Spanish: Dwayne Johnson para niños