Credit: Columbia PicturesBefore Dwayne Johnson became a movie superstar, he was known as The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment. Johnson became a superstar in the wrestling ring, known to the world as The Rock, which has led to his overall success in show business. His daughter, Simone, is now joining the family business—and Johnson revealed his true feelings about what it means for his daughter to follow in his footsteps.
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Though Johnson has seen a meteoric rise through the last ten years, it wasn’t always easy for the man. He initially hoped to play professional football in the NFL but came up short. He was a defensive backup player for the University of Miami before going undrafted in 1995. He would join the Canadian Football League team, Calgary Stampeders, but was cut in his first season for the team.
This led to him joining the WWF via contract help from his father, Rocky Johnson. Dwayne Johnson adopted the wrestling moniker Rocky Mavia before settling in as The Rock. He broke through the industry by becoming a renowned trash talker and having a longtime feud with fellow wrestling star Stone Cold Steve Austin.
Johnson exploded in fandom, leading to his first acting role in The Mummy Returns in 2001. Though the film’s CGI has long been criticized, Johnson would eventually begin to secure leading roles in films like The Scorpion King (2002), Tooth Fairy (2010), and Race to Witch Mountain (2009).
He worked hard to get where he is, which he knows will have to happen for his daughter Simone. Simone has also joined the family business, as she wrestles under the name Ava Raine. She held her first match in 2023. From the looks of it, she is a star in the making, but that won’t come without any challenges—which Dwayne Johnson is worried about.
Dwayne Johnson Reveals True Feelings About Simone’s Wrestling Career
Dwayne Johnson sat down with longtime friend and comedian Kevin Hart as part of the Peacock, Hart to Heart talk show. While on the show, Hart asked Johnson how he felt about Simone in the wrestling business. At first, Johnson states how proud of her he is, especially considering that is where he got his start in show business.
After his accolades, he also gave a truthful statement about what he knows she will go through. According to Johnson:
“That was a special moment when my daughter Simone, my oldest daughter, said ‘I want to get into the business’. What a great sense of pride as a father. But then of course as a parent you start to think about all the pitfalls and the trappings and all the hardships and all the s*** that I know she’s gonna go through, because I’ve lived that business.”
It sounds like Dwayne Johnson is allowing his daughter to learn her lessons as a professional wrestler and make her own mistakes. He may have helped her secure a contract like his father did with him, but Simone might be going it alone with how she molds her career in the ring.
He also divulged the less-than-stellar aspects of being in showbusiness, especially regarding how it pertains to being a professional wrestler. He compared coming up to how Kevin Hart had to play small clubs before becoming a world-renowned comedian. Johnson added:
“There’s the pomp and circumstance of pro wrestling. It’s the pageantry, the Wrestlemania, the bright lights, the big contracts, it’s the global company.Then there’s that underbelly in that world of pro wrestling. Just like being on the circuit when you’re coming up as a comedian playing all these small towns and all these small clubs and all that s*** that you gotta deal with. And backstage politics and all of that.”
If Simone is anything like her father, she must come up the hard way in show business but could become a superstar like him. Dwayne Johnson has long said goodbye to the wrestling ring, though he does make appearances at random times to the crowd’s roar. Should Simone struggle, we imagine Johnson could easily step in as her coach.
It would be an interesting dynamic if he did so, as father and daughter could develop a storyline that reimplants him back in the WWE. Then again, Simone might be telling him to back off so that she achieves success her way.
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Either way, Dwayne Johnson sounds like he’s going through the same emotions that most parents would feel when their children willingly put themselves in dangerous and challenging situations. We imagine Simone is up for the challenge, as her father likely instilled his work ethic into her.
What do you think of Dwayne Johnson’s worries about his daughter’s career choice? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!