Dwayne Johnson used to be unstoppable at the box office, but that hasn’t been the case following this 2019 sequel. 25 years ago, Johnson made his movie debut in The Mummy Returns as The Scorpion King. In truth, this was little more than an almost mute cameo that was used to lure WWE fans to the theater, but regardless, it gave Johnson the urge to pursue becoming a movie star.
The early run of Dwayne Johnson movies was quite bumpy. Despite being primed as a replacement for the likes of Schwarzenegger, most of his star vehicles, like Walking Tall or Doom, underperformed. His debut as the hulking Hobbs in 2011’s Fast Five changed all that, and he quickly became box office gold.
Cut to 15 years later, and that’s no longer the case. Disney’s live-action Moana remake was an instant flop, with Johnson’s unconvincing muscle suit and Michael Bolton hairpiece doing little to help its performance. Sadly, the movie is the latest in a downward trend for the star. His bid for awards glory with 2025’s The Smashing Machine also went nowhere – though it did yield his best performance in a long time.
Recent years have seen most of Johnson’s efforts, like Black Adam, receive tepid reviews and box office. It should be said that there always comes a time when the biggest A-listers experience a downward period, but for Johnson, this keeps getting extended. In fact, Jumanji: The Next Level was his last real, unambiguous big screen hit.
Dwayne Johnson Hasn’t Had A True Box Office Hit As A Lead Since Jumanji: The Next Level
From 2011 to 2019, Johnson rarely missed. In addition to the Fast & Furious sequels, he kept knocking out crowd-pleasers like Rampage and Central Intelligence. Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was one of his best efforts from this run, so it made all the sense in the world for him to return for the sequel, The Next Level.
This reunited him with Kevin Hart, Jack Black and Karen Gillan, and while the reviews weren’t as good, Jumanji: The Next Level still earned over $800 worldwide. From 2019 onwards marked a quiet change in his career. He scored some streaming hits during the pandemic (with Red Notice being the biggest example), and loaned his voice to animated hits like Moana 2.
However, the days when audiences always turned up for his leading man vehicles appear to be done. In truth, this felt inevitable, as an intense sameness began to creep into his work. Projects like Skyscraper may have attracted healthy opening weekends, but nearly a decade later, people would be hard-pressed to remember anything that happens in them.
Dwayne Johnson’s Movie Star Formula Ended Up Hurting His Career
Johnson is a performer who is very aware of himself as a brand, and soon after Fast Five recharged his career, he made some calculated choices. As explained in a fascinating 2018 profile with Rolling Stone, Johnson developed a formula for himself. He focused on playing smart but sensitive heroes that leaned close to his own persona, in big-budget, PG-13 blockbusters the whole family could enjoy.
He consciously avoided making smaller movies that would let him flex his acting muscles and made sure his films were never too dark or intense. Johnson wanted audiences to have a good time with his movies period, even if this meant they lacked any real grit or scales:
My problem is I have a relationship with an audience around the world. For years I’ve built a trust with them that they’re gonna come to my movies and feel good.
Johnson’s formula for success worked for a long time, but audiences eventually tired of it. Red Notice may have been a gigantic streaming hit, but it was also one of the worst films of his career, and highlighted how samey and, frankly, lazy his output had become.
Johnson’s next movie will be Jumanji: Open World, and it might quietly be a major turning point. If it’s a hit, this proves there’s still an audience for Johnson’s particular brand of blockbuster; and if it’s not, he will need to reinvent himself again. The Smashing Machine was a big step in the right direction, and after years of letting him get too comfortable making the same types of films, feels like the type of project he should focus on from this point.
Source: Rolling Stone
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- Birthdate
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May 2, 1972
- Birthplace
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Hayward, California, U.S.A
- Occupation(s)
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Actor, Producer, and Professional Wrestler
- Notable Projects
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Moana, Fast & Furious
- First On-Screen Role
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That ’70s Show (1999)
- Current Spouse
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Lauren Hashian
Dwayne Johnson is an American actor, producer, and former professional wrestler. He gained global recognition in WWE under the ring name “The Rock,” becoming one of professional wrestling’s most prominent figures. Johnson later transitioned to film, starring in commercially successful franchises such as Fast & Furious and Jumanji, and voicing Maui in Disney’s Moana.