Despite Having 376m Followers, Dwayne Johnson Tastes Defeat in a Popularity Contest to 60-Year-Old Hollywood Star Who Has Just 9m Followers on Instagram

If social media followers are a yardstick to measure popularity, Dwayne Johnson by far is the most popular. The Great One boasts 376 million followers on Instagram alone, the most by any male actor. In comparison, some of his revered Hollywood colleagues enjoy a tenth of his social media presence.

Yet, a 60-year-old actor, whose Instagram follower base is yet to touch double digits, has emerged as the proverbial David, leaving Johnson reeling as Goliath.

What was the contest and who beat Dwayne Johnson to become the most popular actor?

In a recent study commissioned by the National Research Group– a firm specializing in the analysis of entertainment and technology- people were asked to name actors who would play a factor in them seeing a movie at the theaters.

Though Johnson featured among the top five, he didn’t get the top spot. In fact, Tom Cruise was the most popular according to the study, followed by Dwayne Johnson.

Cruise, who is a bona fide Hollywood legend, loves working in action films like The People’s Champ. The 60-year-old has immortalized himself as Ethan Hunt, the fictionalized protagonist he plays in the Mission Impossible movie franchise.

Meanwhile, Dwayne Johnson was the most popular star in the 13-19 age bracket. While his early movies didn’t predict his future success, Johnson has been able to up his acting game to become a big star in Hollywood.

Earlier this year, the 50-year-old missed out on being featured on the Time 100 Most Influential list. That was Dwayne Johnson’s snub from the prestigious list for the fourth straight year after being named as one in 2019.

Meanwhile, Johnson’s longtime collaborator and close friend, Kevin Hart, was also among the top 20 most popular actors of 2023.

The older the better?

The list was oddly in favor of male actors. Among the top 20 individuals, only three female actors were featured. They are Julia Roberts at number six, Sandra Bullock at number 12, and Angelina Jolie at number 18. Jolie’s ex-husband Brad Pitt and his best friend George Clooney took the fourth and 16th spots, respectively.

Meanwhile, the gender disproportion wasn’t the only highlight of the findings. Nineteen of the 20 actors were aged over 40. Chris Hemsworth (39) was the only actor to make the list while still not entering Club 40 and above. He was placed 20th.

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At 85, Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman was the oldest entrant. Harrison Ford, 80, was the second octogenarian on the list. The duo were placed 19th and 15th, respectively.

The others include 66-year-old Tom Hanks in third place, 68-year-old Denzel Washington in fifth position, 54-year-old Will Smith, 48-year-old Leonardo DiCaprio, 58-year-old Johnny Depp, and 43-year-old Kevin Hart, taking the seventh, eighth, ninth, and 10th places, respectively.

Keanu Reeves, 58, was slotted in the 11th position. Ryan Reynolds, 46, was 13th, 56-year-old Adam Sandler was placed 14th, and 58-year-old Robert Downey, Jr. was placed 17th.

Does that mean old stars have more credibility? What do you make of the recent study? Where would you have slotted Dwayne Johnson on the list? Let us know in the comments.

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