THE CULTUREPULP INTERVIEW: The Rock


A slightly longer version of an interview in the April 2 Oregonian:




When Arnold Schwarzenegger won the California governorship, Dwayne Johnson -- a.k.a. The Rock -- gave him the perfect gift:

A baseball bat.

Specifically, The Rock says, he gave The Governator a custom-built Louisville Slugger with the following inscription:

"Congratulations, Gov. Schwarzenegger. In case of emergency: (A) Call me; (B) Use this."

"And in the letter I gave him congratulating him," The Rock continues, "I said, 'The great thing about you winning is: Now every role you were gonna get is gonna come my way.'"

It's a joke -- but is it prophecy? With "The Rundown" just out on DVD and his remake of "Walking Tall" hitting screens Friday, we're in the middle of The Rock's media moment. Will this 6'5" WWE superstar -- the youngest in a three-generation pro-wrestling clan -- find lasting success as an action hero where Hulk Hogan and Rowdy Roddy Piper failed?

It’s a delicate balancing act. Hogan and Piper blundered into self-parody -- choosing projects like "Mr. Nanny" and "Jungleground" to flaunt their baby-oiled wares. So far, The Rock has fared much better: While "The Scorpion King" was strictly B-list, the much-smarter "Rundown" is developing a cult following among action geeks.

We talked with Dwayne Johnson about his hopes for "Walking Tall" -- a "re-imagining" of the 1973 drive-in classic -- acting advice from Bruce Willis, his Hawaiian dreams and the fine art of self-deprecation. An edited transcript follows the jump.

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Q. In the April 2002 issue of Interview magazine, you're interviewed by ["Lost in Translation" star] Scarlett Johansson. [The Rock laughs] Have you talked with her since she became an art-house sensation?

A. Yeah, of course -- I see her all the time. I couldn't be more proud of her. She just has a phenomenal old soul. We did that interview when she was like 16. She was a big fan of mine from back when I was wrestling -- so when they approached her to do the interview, she jumped all over it. At that time, the only work of hers that I had seen was "The Horse Whisperer." I haven't seen "Lost in Translation," but I have it. But yeah -- she's kickin' ass.

Q. Even though "The Rundown" didn't do as well at the box office as people hoped, it's probably going to find an audience on video.

A. Well, I got great news yesterday [March 25]: -- that first 24 hours, we sold a million-and-a-half copies [of the "Rundown" DVD]. But you're right: It's difficult when you have a movie that delivers on a lot of levels and it doesn't do what it was expected to do, box-office-wise. I wanted people to see the movie -- I know everyone will talk about how a movie's "good" and it's not that good -- but no! This movie's really, really good! [laughs]




Q. You participated in the recent "Buford Pusser Days" celebration down in Tennessee.

A. You bet. McNairy County.

Q. Before you got involved in "Walking Tall," were you aware that Sheriff Pusser was basically the Paul Bunyan of Tennessee -- this huge deal?

A. Very, very aware. I was always a big fan of the original -- I first saw it when I was 8. What excited me then was that the hero was beating up the bad guys with a stick. But when I got older, I really learned to appreciate the story of Buford Pusser -- the legacy, what he stood up for, what it really meant to "walk tall." Not a lot of people know this, but I actually went to the studio with the idea.

Q. The first half of your version of "Walking Tall" hews fairly closely to the 1973 original -- right down to the scene where you take off your shirt and show your scars to the jury.

A. That's right.

Q. You look a lot better doing that than Joe Don Baker did.

A. [laughs] You know, I'm gonna meet him. I'm really excited.

Q. What does working with a guy like John Travolta [on "Be Cool," the now-filming sequel to "Get Shorty" ] teach you? He knows a thing or two about shifting career gears.

A. Absolutely. The best piece of advice I've gotten was Bruce Willis basically saying, "There's a real genuineness about yourself, so if you can continue to keep that in your films -- regardless of whether it's an action role, a dramatic role, a comedy -- all of it comes from a place of honesty".... Probably because I have a short attention span, that simplistic advice has really helped me.

Q. You've worked with Jackie Chan's fight choreographer. Any chance you'll ever work with Jackie Chan?

A. You know, I've never thought about that. I'd love to. What's great about Jackie is he can take all the elements around him and make them work. Right now, I'm looking at a bottle of Pellegrino -- I can imagine what Jackie could do with a bottle of Pellegrino within the scene, you know? [laughs] And not only that, but at the drop of a dime [he'll] be self-deprecating. I don't mind being the butt of the joke and putting myself out there for the joke.

Q. A mark of true confidence.

A. That's true. Thank you.

Q. Although, that said, in "Walking Tall" it must have been nice not to be abused by monkeys [which happens rather a lot in "The Rundown"].

A. Well, you never know until you spend five, six hours with one of them monkeys. You're a new man.




Q. Your version of "Walking Tall" has a real late-'70s/early-'80s action-movie feel.

A. Absolutely. That's what we set out to do: to take elements of what made the original movie a classic to me -- the intensity and the rawness, the realness of the fights. My favorite actor of all time is Clint Eastwood -- so taking [him], Charles Bronson, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, "Cool Hand Luke," "Billy Jack".... Remember "Billy Jack"? Films like that.
I've always liked the reluctant hero -- the true reluctant hero, because that word's thrown out there a lot. They're really not [reluctant if], in the opening scene, they're shooting guns.

Q. In "Die Hard," it takes 25, 30 minutes before the first gunshot is fired. You never see that in action movies any more.

A. That's right. I love the way that Kevin Bray directed our "Walking Tall," when you hear Gregg Allman and [the hero's] just walking down the train tracks…. [laughs]

Q. Oh, sure. Very '70s.

A. Yeah. Another scene I like is, we're coming home, and my [character's] mom's white, and my dad's black -- and we make no bones about it.

Q. You're Samoan and African-American, correct? Was that mixed-race family something you pushed for?

A. I knew that we had to have this discussion after the first draft came in. All the executives were looking around: "Um, so ... Dwayne, how do you see" -- and they're kind of mumbling the words -- "How do you see your mom?..." And I said, "Aw, man, that’s easy -- Dad's black. Mom's white. That's it. Here we go."

Q. Now that Arnold Schwarzenegger is running the world's fifth-largest economy, are you being given the chance to step into his role in the proposed "Terminator 4"?

A. You know, I don't know how that rumor got started -- no. It's his franchise. I appreciate all the flattering comparisons, but....

Q. In his "Rundown" cameo, Arnold urges you to "Have fun." Are you?

A. I'm having a great time. I'm very thankful -- I'm in a great position where I can make movies that are entertaining and hopefully give people their money's worth, work with great actors and kick ass and be funny.

Q. You're famous for the catchphrase "Can You Smell What The Rock's Got Cookin'?" What, in fact, is it that you're cookin' when you say that?

A. Oh. I'm cooking all-day-long, fresh country ass-whuppings.

Q. Your father taught you a lot of lessons about how to conduct yourself in the business of pro wrestling. Have his lessons carried over to the film business?

A. To a certain degree. I've always had the mentality in wrestling where I wanna out-work my peers and try and shine when I could. And even when I failed -- and I failed a lot in wrestling -- learn from my mistakes.
And I have a lot of carry-over as well, from college football in Miami, of committing myself to a goal -- conceptually working as a team, sacrificing things. You know, getting up before class at 5 a.m. to work out with the team, going to class, having your meeting, going to lunch, working out, going to practice.... It’s that athlete mentality.
I always give props to the crew -- because I've gotta be in the [makeup] chair at 5 a.m., but they've gotta be on the set at 4, at 3. And once I'm done and I'm in my truck driving home, they stay on the set an extra two hours -- they move the trailers, break everything down, movie it to the next location. Unsung heroes, a lot of them.

Q. You've exhibited a flair for comedy. Is there a chance we'll ever see you in a non-action film where you play it straight for laughs?

A. Sure. You bet. "Be Cool" is all laughs, no action. Talk about self-deprecating: I play this Samoan bodyguard -- villain, by the way. I'm John Travolta's enemy in the movie, but when it’s just he and I together, on the down-low, I'm trying to tell him, "Hey, you know, I can sing, I can act!" He and Uma Thurman are like, "Well, what can you do?" And I raise my eyebrow in front of them and they're like, "Oh, that's so talented!"
[My character's] gay, as well -- so when I'm trying to convince them I can sing, I'm playing "You Ain't Woman Enough to Take My Man" by Loretta Lynn.

Q. Are you still interested in making a movie about the early king of Hawaii?

A. Oh, yeah. It's King Kamehameha, and it's awesome -- "Battle for Paradise." The script is on its third or fourth draft. That's to me what "Ali" was to Will Smith or "Braveheart" was to Mel Gibson. I'm not saying I look forward to being nominated -- but that's a passionate role that I believe in. I can't wait.




Interview with the Rock (The Oregonian, April 2, 2004)

Posted: Fri - April 2, 2004 at 09:12 AM        

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