Dwayne Johnson is a man of many trades. Whether it is professional wrestling, acting, or building businesses on businesses, he knows how to do it all with absolute perfection. His career is easily one of the most influential ones out there since he went from making $40 a match to having a net worth of $800 million. And let’s not forget the more valuable, loyal fan base that he has managed to build for himself.
In addition to all things mentioned above, Dwayne Johnson is a big troll who does not hold back when it comes to trolling those around him. Now, anyone familiar with WWE is well aware of the legendary rivalry between him and John Cena. However, even before the feud had started, Dwayne Johnson couldn’t pass on an opportunity to take a dig at his soon-to-be rival.
Dwayne Johnson Calls John Cena’s Film a Torture
In order to induct his father into the WWE Hall of Fame, all the way back in 2008, Dwayne Johnson flew into Orlando, Florida. During his speech at the event, Johnson took playful digs at wrestlers, including John Cena. While giving the speech, Johnson suddenly turned serious and talked about an apparent controversy regarding WWE and “illegal torture.” Later on, he jokingly revealed that the controversy was Cena’s film, The Marine, being used as a torture device.
“There was some trouble this year, there was this big controversy with the WWE and illegal torture. I don’t know if you heard about it, not too many people heard about it, but apparently, they would find Iraqi insurgents, they’d sit them down, they’d tie them up, and they’d make them watch copies of the DVD, The Marine.”
As the crowd erupts in laughter, the camera focuses on Cena, who had a hilarious reaction to Johnson’s comment. Johnson winked at his former co-worker who proceeded to bow down to him. The Black Adam actor then tried to diffuse the situation by joking about his own film, Doom.
Dwayne Johnson Talks About His Rivalry with John Cena
While a lot of the “rivalries”, we see on-screen are usually fictional and made up for the views, Johnson confirms that this was not the case with him and Cena. During an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Johnson stated,
“We had a great rivalry in the WWE. Here’s the thing…In the world of wrestling, it’s fictionalized, it’s a TV show, but we had our rivalry and now we can look back on it, it was so real like we had real problems with each other. We really did…We had real issues with each other. So when you see him you can talk to him. Now, what’s great about our relationship is, you know, he’s one of my best friends. We talk all the time and I’m rooting for him to win.”
Well, all seems to be good between the two wrestlers-turned-actors now! Cena once stated that when his first few films weren’t doing too well in terms of likeability, it was Johnson who stepped up to offer him a much-needed piece of advice.
Source: WWE Hall of Fame 2008
