Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is currently the highest-paid actor in Hollywood today. When the former WWE Champion left the company in the early 2000s to begin his acting career, few would've likely expected his massive success. While names such as John Cena and Dave Bautista have had success in the field, Johnson is still the most successful wrestler-turned-actor.
Since beginning his acting career, Dwayne Johnson has starred alongside some massive names. Names such as Kevin Hart, Jason Statham, and Pierce Brosnan have praised the former wrestler. However, he's also had his rivals in Hollywood who've not enjoyed working with Johnson in the past.
10 Stephen Merchant
Stephen Merchant worked alongside Dwayne Johnson on Fighting with my Family, the WWE Studios film based on former champion Saraya's life and journey in professional wrestling. The comedian wrote, starred, and directed the film while working closely with the former wrestling star.
Merchant really enjoyed working with Johnson on the film and spoke highly of his willingness to take criticism, and ability to give full attention to a project. In fact, the comedian even believes the former champion could be President one day. He stated:
“He definitely works harder than the existing president, I’m pretty sure that the Rock has almost no executive time. He would be a terrific president, he’s got the charm, he’s already got the popularity. I don’t know personally what his policies would be. I just hope there would be a place for me in the Cabinet.”
9 Danny Devito
Danny Devito worked alongside Dwayne Johnson in the Jumanji franchise. Despite the clear height and weight disparity between the two men, the It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia star believes he could beat The Rock in a wrestling match.
Well, not Devito himself, but his wrestling alter-ego, The Trashman. When asked about their two wrestling gimmicks meeting in the ring, the comedian quipped:
"How would that matchup be? Oh, I'd kick his ass. Oh, I'd wipe him up, I'd wipe the floor with him. Oh he's a real pushover, that Dwayne."
8 Zac Efron
Zac Efron and Dwayne Johnson were co-stars in the reboot of Baywatch. While the movie itself didn't receive a great reception, the two co-stars allegedly really enjoyed working alongside each other, and remain friends to this day.
Efron stated that the thing that surprised him about Johnson is how he continues to improve. He even likened the former wrestler to a flower, stating:
"You know, what's funny is we're clearly very different. He's a funny dude. He's always expanding, and he just gets better as he goes, like a flower that never stops blooming. It was fun to get in and really juke and jive with a guy who's twice my size and has zero fear."
7 Tyrese Gibson
Dwayne Johnson's exit from the Fast and Furious franchise is arguably the biggest stain on his acting career. For a star who's always been protective over his image and his reputation, his hasty exit and walking out on his co-star led to many negative headlines.
Many of those headlines came from co-star Tyrese Gibson. Following Johnson's exit, he made several posts slamming him for endangering the franchise. One post read:
“Hello world, hello loyal fans and loved ones from OUR fast universe. I’m sorry to announce that if [Dwayne] is in Fast9 there will no more Roman [Pearce]. You mess with family and my daughter's survival I mess with yours.”
6 Jason Statham
While Tyrese Gibson had a rough relationship with Dwayne Johnson, their fellow co-star from Fast and Furious, Jason Statham, didn't. In fact, when the former wrestler decided to leave the franchise for his own spinoff, the latter joined him.
Statham worked alongside Johnson on Hobbs and Shaw, and couldn't have spoken more highly of him. The action star stated:
"He's extremely precise and he's just so relaxed. He's just a diamond to work with. He's a 10 out of 10."
5 Brendan Fraser
Dwayne Johnson has always spoken highly of his co-stars, but he's always been even more supportive of Brendan Fraser. The pair worked together on The Mummy Returns, which was the former WWE Champion's first major role.
Funnily enough, Fraser never met Johnson until after the shooting of the film ended, as Johnson's character was CGI'd in. Reflecting on the experience of "working with" the former wrestler, the actor stated:
"The first time I met him was at the reception after The Mummy Returns. We hadn't met in person before then, actually, although we were fighting onscreen. But every time I 'worked with him' he was just a piece of tape on a stick. So it was nice to go, 'Hey, man. How are ya? We finally meet!'"
4 Jack Black
Dwayne Johnson worked alongside another comedy legend, Jack Black, during his time in the Jumanji franchise. While the two actors are both masters in their own genres, there were no ego issues during filming. According to Black, the opposite was true.
Black stated that he had an unspoken bond with the former WWE Champion. Reflecting on their time working on Jumanji, the comedian stated:
"You would think that egos would collide, but nothing could be further from the truth. Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and I shared a magical bond. We didn't need words, we just exchanged energy. Eye contact turned into a soul searching industrial complex of exchange."
3 Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brosnan is acting royalty and was one of Dwayne Johnson's co-stars in the recently released Black Adam film. While the movie didn't do as well at the box office as he'd hoped, the actor formerly known for portraying James Bond was praised.
Moreover, Brosnan really enjoyed working with Johnson and praised his performance as the antihero. The acclaimed actor stated:
"It's an ensemble piece, Black Adam. You have Dwayne, who's at the pinnacle of his fame and fortune and success and popularity. He is magnificent as Black Adam."
2 Vin Diesel
While other stars from the Fast and Furious might've had issues with Dwayne Johnson, it was his high-profile feud with Vin Diesel that stole headlines. The two massive action stars traded insults for years after the split in the franchise.
In a 2021 interview, Diesel reflected on his time working with Johnson. According to the action star, his use of tough love likely contributed to the situation, stating:
"I could give a lot of tough love [towards Dwayne]. Not Felliniesque, but I would do anything I'd have to do in order to get performances in anything I'm producing."
1 Ryan Reynolds
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Ryan Reynolds and Dwayne Johnson are currently the stars of the ongoing Red Notice franchise. The first title was released on Netflix in 2021, with Gal Gadot in the co-starring role. The movie was a big success for the streaming service, with two sequels already in production.
The biggest reason that the series works is the chemistry between Johnson and Reynolds. The latter admitted that the movie took a lot of time in production, because the two stars kept making each other laugh. Reynold noted:
"We made it about 1 or 2 days past the halfway point line. I'm guessing we might've finished the movie if we didn't spend 90 percent of the time dicking around, laughing. I've known Dwayne for like 15 years. So, we tend to spend time trying to make each other laugh, which is a really irresponsible thing to do with Netflix, their money."