Vince McMahon’s Unique Experiment With Dwayne Johnson Made Several Individuals Worried for The Rock in 1998: “It’s Going to Kill Him as a Competitor”

Dwayne Johnson made his WWE debut in 1996 under the ring name ‘Rocky Maivia’. After a failed babyface run the former wrestler was building towards becoming a heel. The incident that Bruce Prichard recalled in his podcast episode was from when Johnson was around two years into the wrestling business. A new script asked ‘Rocky Maivia’ to kiss Vince McMahon‘s backside and join in the infamous “kiss my a** club”. The young wrestler refused, which turned into a ‘fuss’ in the locker room.

After winning a championship, several rumors started spreading about Johnson developing a ‘big head’. However, Prichard recently debunked these rumors about Johnson and shared the observation he made during that time.

Had Dwayne Johnson really gotten ‘big-headed’?

Bruce started by saying that it wasn’t just The Rock who opposed McMahon’s idea at the time. Not just Johnson, but Prichard along with other bookers also opposed it. “There were a lot of people that felt that if you do that to him right now, that is going to kill him. It’s going to kill him as a heel. It’s going to kill him as a competitor,” recalled Prichard. Since he was just two years into the business, there wouldn’t be much of a chance for him to bounce back on the track. Then Prichard began to shed light on the ‘fuss’ created.

The former WWE employee in his podcast, ‘Something to Wrestle’ labeled The Rock as one of the nicer guys and debunked the rumors around Johnson having gotten ‘big-headed’. He said that it was a lie made up by the people who were jealous of Johnson because of his success. While there were people who were in the business for 10 years, Johnson got more opportunities than them within only two years of work.

To back up Prichard’s view of Johnson being a ‘nice’ guy, we can see him interacting with his fans quite frequently, more so than probably any other wrestling star.

Dwayne Johnson is the nicest for his fans

Keeping fans happy is not an easy task. So, it is understandable why stars would avoid fan interaction most of the time. However, we all know and see Dwayne Johnson interacting with or appreciating his fans every now and then.

READ MORE:- WATCH: Dwayne Johnson Surprises Two Lucky Fans With the Gift of a Lifetime

He once revealed the reason behind the same in an interview. According to him, he never wanted fame to snatch away his ‘actual’ self. Johnson always wanted to stay the same.

He reached a point in his career where he was tired of being something he is not. And The Rock saw his fans as an act of recovery for the same. Moreover, it helped him remain grounded and avoid getting ‘big-headed’.

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Do you see The Brahma Bull as a down-to-earth person? Or someone who would be considered big-headed?