Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is one of the biggest movie stars in the world. He rose to fame as a professional wrestler and successfully transitioned to acting — both on the big and small screens — most recently starring in the hit TV show “Ballers” and in the film “Skyscraper,” being released July 13. His acting career has earned him one of the highest net worths in entertainment.
Just 21 celebrities across all industries earned more money than The Rock between June 2016 and June 2017, according to Forbes. When compared with other actors, only Mark Wahlberg earned more that year, which saw Johnson take in $65 million. His status as the world’s second highest-paid actor, however, was a step down from the year before. In 2016, Johnson was the highest-earning actor in the world, doubling his 2015 earnings with a payday of $64.5 million.
The Rock’s success, according to Forbes, can be traced to his status as a perennial Hollywood A-lister who commands upfront fees in the eight-figure range. Information from data and statistics site Statistic Brain backs up those reports. Johnson earned $5.5 million for 2002’s “Scorpion King” and $9 million each for “The Other Guys” in 2010 and “Baywatch” in 2017, but beyond that, eight-figure paydays are the norm. Some of his biggest paychecks include:
“Fast Five” (2011): $10 million
“Fast & Furious 6” (2013): $10 million
“The Fate of the Furious” (2017): $10 million plus back-end payments
“The Rundown” (2003): $12.5 million
“Central Intelligence” (2016): $14 million
“Furious 7” (2015): $15 million
“G.I.: Joe Retaliation” (2013): $15 million
“Walking Tall” (2004): $15 million
“Hercules” (2014): $20 million
“San Andreas” (2015): $25 million
The Rock now regularly commands over $20 million per movie, with a contract worth $22 million for his upcoming film “Red Notice,” Business Insider reported.
If The Rock earns the biggest bucks in Hollywood, it’s probably because Dwayne Johnson movies bring plenty of money home to the studios. Twenty-one of his movies pulled in nine figures at the global box office, with six earning more than $600 million and two — both from the “Fast and the Furious” franchise — breaking the $1 billion mark. In total, his movies have grossed over $9.4 billion worldwide.
And it’s not just movies — The Rock has also found success on the small screen with his starring role in the Emmy-nominated show “Ballers.”
According to Variety, just five other actors in any television comedy series — all of whom appear on the highly rated CBS show “The Big Bang Theory” — command higher per-episode salaries than The Rock, who earns around $650,000 per episode of “Ballers.”
The Rock: WWE and Early Film Career
The Rock’s jolly demeanor and trademark smile belie the former University of Miami college football player’s enormous physical size and impressive physique. According to HealthyCeleb, Johnson stands six feet, five inches tall and weighs 260 pounds.
Although his football career was not particularly noteworthy, Johnson’s speed, size, charisma, work ethic and raw athleticism helped him find his original calling in professional wrestling — which is actually his family’s business.
The Rock’s mother was born in Samoa, and Johnson identifies strongly with his island heritage — he has many traditional tribal tattoos. Both his maternal grandfather and his father were professional wrestlers, and shortly after an injury forced him out of the Canadian Football League, he followed in their footsteps and joined World Wrestling Entertainment. He quickly became a WWE crowd favorite and in 1998, The Rock won his first of many world championships.
He then appeared in a few TV series, usually as himself, and in 2001, he joined countless previous wrestlers who tested their crossover appeal by taking a shot at acting when he landed a starring role in “The Mummy Returns.” A leading man was born, and The Rock broke tradition with those other wrestler-turned-actors who couldn’t find the success he did. He’s now one of the most successful actors of his time with over 100 assorted credits to his name.
Dwayne Johnson New Movie and Other Projects
The Rock shows no signs of slowing down. The most highly anticipated new Dwayne Johnson film is the “Jumanji” sequel, due out in December 2019. The announcement comes on the heels of the success of “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” which earned nearly $1 billion globally. The film is a reboot of the classic, which chronicles the adventures of kids who are transported to a mystical jungle through a magic video game. That, however, is not the only thing in the works for The Rock. New movie titles for the extremely busy actor due out at future dates include:
Although they keep their private life mostly out of the public eye, Dwayne Johnson has been in a relationship for more than a decade with Lauren Hashian. In 2015, the couple announced the birth of a baby girl, Jasmine. In April 2018, the couple announced the birth of their second daughter, Tiana Gia. Johnson also has a third daughter, 16-year-old Simone Alexandra, with ex-wife Dany Garcia.
