DEBATE: Should The Rock make a semi full-time return to Wrestling?

[Heyman]

DEBATE: Should The Rock make a semi full-time return to Wrestling?

<font color=white>ARGUMENT#1: Yes - The Rock should make a semi full-time return to Wrestling</font>

-The Rock is a WRESTLER........not an actor. He should never forget that. With the popularity of wrestling slowly but surely starting to go up again, the WWE could benefit from The Rock being on TV more often. Since The Rock is no longer stale like he was in 2002, I'm pretty sure that his presence could have a significant impact on ratings.

-With Triple H and Goldberg both set to take some time off after Wrestlemania (or Backlash), Raw could use another 'main-event' big name that wrestles. The Rock fits that bill. ANYONE who feuds with The Rock (whether they actually win or not) will get that much more 'over'.

-The Rock being on WWE TV may also help him. Since his face will be on TV so much more, he will be that much more recognizeable when one of his movies comes out. Right now - he has been off of TV too long. This could actually hurt him as a potential 'draw' on the big screen.

-If The Rock acts in too many movies in too short a time period, this could actually hurt his movie career. Ironically enough - this is somewhat similar to when he debuted as a wrestler. The WWE constantly shoved "Rocky Maivia" down the fans' throats and as result, the fans turned on him. If "The Rock" is constantly shoved down Hollywood's throat, the fans (viewers of movies) may not like his movies as much.

-Perhaps The Rock should be more like George Klooney (formerly a part of ER). If you recall correctly, George Klooney acted on television, while only acting in movies just some of the time. <font color=yellow>Once he became a DRAW in the theatres, THEN he went to Hollywood full-time</font>. The Rock should do this as well!

-You don't quit your day job! Eminem has acted in a movie, but he still raps. Jennifer Lopez has acted in movies, but she is still a singer/prostitute. The Rock should do the same. The Rock can be a dominating force on WWE TV, and then do a significant JOB right before he leaves (which will obviously really put the 'victor' over big time).


<font color=white>ARGUMENT#2: The Rock should do what he is currently doing</font>

-No! The Rock should continue to do what he is doing now. The WWE finally seem to be on the right in creating new stars........stars of which MIGHT become as big as The Rock or Austin one day. Even if they don't - they are atleast in a position to potentially become that big. If The Rock comes back, things go back to square one. How can a guy like Chris Benoit emerge as a solid face if The Rock is there? If The Rock is on TV, newer guys will get much less TV time.

-Why SHOULD The Rock come back anyways? I mean - what does he have left to achieve? He has practically done everything. He hasn't won the World title at Wrestlemania, but he's already beaten the biggest names in sports-entertainment there (Austin and Hogan).

-Unless The Rock is willing to take a paycut (he now gets paid on an appearance basis), there is no way the WWE can afford him to be on TV for an extended period of time.

-The other thing about The Rock, is that his 'face' image will whereoff a lot quicker than one may think. As result - The Rock may start getting 'booed' again......something which won't exactly help his 'Hollywood' image (although this is debatable).



In my PERSONAL opinion however, I'd like to see The Rock come back on a semi-permanent basis (i.e. he wrestles for 6 months, takes 6 months off, etc.).

[Seabass]

He doesnt need to come back hes making more money now and doing less work

plus i dont wanna see him back, id rather see new faces then once again bringing back someone whose already done it all

[Seabass]

oh and by the way jennifer lopez was an actress before she was a singer

[The Naitch]

Heyman still knows his shit.

You said it all for me, especially with the J.Lo prostitute thing :y:

[MVP]

With talks of Edge reutrning to RAW, The Rock would be perfect for him to have a long-term feud with. Think about it, both superstars are great on the mic, regardless of whether they're heels or faces, and have great wrestling abilities.

I can see it now, Edge comes back and gets praise for being absent so long, and is whored out to the fans. The Rock gets jealous of Edge's thunder, and claims that he's still "The People's Champion." Edge continues to get face pops, while The Rock gets major heel heat (8-)) during weekly mic battles, and finally culminating to milestone PPV matches where Edge eventually goes over The People's Champ, and earns main event glory.

The Rock vs. Edge = RATINGS

[The Naitch]

Edge vs. Rock would SUCK!

[The Naitch]

Rock vs. Cena
Rock vs. Orton
Rock vs. Triple H and Evolution
Rock vs. Brock
Rock vs. Kane

Any of those would be better than Edge vs. Rock

[Mikey]

Would I like to The Rock return full time? Yes. Is it going to happen soon? Unfortunatly The answer is no

[Heyman]

He doesnt need to come back hes making more money now and doing less work

plus i dont wanna see him back, id rather see new faces then once again bringing back someone whose already done it all

On the flip side - he can HELP television ratings.

1) The wrestling business does seem to be slowly on its way up again

2) The Rock is no longer stale like he was in 2002.

The Rock can also help these NEW faces (i.e. Orton) get over more by doing significant jobs.


Here's how the WWE can use The Rock in any 6 month time period:

1) decide beforehand who they want The Rock to put over at the end of the 6th month.

2)Book The Rock to win almost every single match in convincing style (after all.....he is THE ROCK....an icon). In the 4th month or 5th month, have him feud with his eventual killer (i.e. lets say Orton). In the 1st confrontation, have it be a draw. In the second confrontation however, have Orton (or whomever go over clean).

What this does, is make the victory look HUGE (since The Rock will have looked pretty dominating in the time period leading up to that).

[Heyman]

Would I like to The Rock return full time? Yes. Is it going to happen soon? Unfortunatly The answer is no

The Rock will probably never return full-time. A semi-permenant return however (i.e. 6 months here, 6 months Hollywood) would be IDEAL for both parties IMO.

1) WWE benefits in having The Rock on TV more often

2) The Rock benefits because he keeps a 'fresh face' on TV (and doesn't get forgotten or 'lost in the mix' in Hollywood).

Remember - the fans care about The Rock.........not Dwayne Johnson. If 'The Rock' stays off of TV for too much (and hardly shows up), his "Rock" image will become less and less, while his Dwayne Johnson image will become stronger.........which is a BAD thing!

[Mikey]

I cant believe I am saying this but I agree with you Heyman

[MVP]

On the flip side - he can HELP television ratings.

1) The wrestling business does seem to be slowly on its way up again

2) The Rock is no longer stale like he was in 2002.

The Rock can also help these NEW faces (i.e. Orton) get over more by doing significant jobs.


Here's how the WWE can use The Rock in any 6 month time period:

1) decide beforehand who they want The Rock to put over at the end of the 6th month.

2)Book The Rock to win almost every single match in convincing style (after all.....he is THE ROCK....an icon). In the 4th month or 5th month, have him feud with his eventual killer (i.e. lets say Orton). In the 1st confrontation, have it be a draw. In the second confrontation however, have Orton (or whomever go over clean).

What this does, is make the victory look HUGE (since The Rock will have looked pretty dominating in the time period leading up to that).
I think an Orton victory over The Rock should wait until at least Wrestlemania XXI(assuming The Rock remains with the company until then). I like the idea a whole hell of a lot, but Orton needs more time before it's safe for him to be going over icons.

Does Orton have a bright future ahead of him? Yes, and his wrestling and charisma has improved a lot since he first joined.

Is Orton ready for main event glory? No, not at least for another year in my opinion. There's no need to rush Orton into the main event scene because his push would be rushed and less effective. I remember how much I hated Brock Lesnar after Summerslam '02. I only came around to liking Lesnar at about this time last year.

[Savio]

All they have him do is job now. I'd like to see him with mick foley for the rest of his WWE stay.

[MVP]

Rock vs. Cena
Rock vs. Orton
Rock vs. Triple H and Evolution
Rock vs. Brock
Rock vs. Kane

Any of those would be better than Edge vs. RockRock vs. Triple H, and Rock vs. Brock has already been done.

Rock vs. Kane would absolutely blow considering how poor Kane's wrestling is.

Rock vs. Orton and Rock vs. Cena are great, but not yet.

[The Naitch]

well, Triple H and Brock have changed slighlty so Rock feuding with them won't be exactly the same as last time.

What about Rock vs. Benoit?

[MVP]

What about Rock vs. Benoit?Yes, that would work.

[CBright7831]

That's great and all, but let's be realistic, Rock will only be on television until (and during) Wrestlemania, and then kiss him goodbye, because that's the last time you'll PROBABLY see him this year. I've been a Rock fan since his early days, but I don't see him making a full-time return EVER unfortunately. :(

[AareDub]

I think it would be great for him to return. I've hated his character for so many years, but I still catch myself getting caught up in the excitement when he shows up these days. As much as I still hate the character I have to admit that he's damn entertaining.

I think it would be nice to see some fresh feuds with some of the new main eventers, but hell, I'd even watch another Rock/HHH feud. The main reason for that is that the two could draw enough based on the fact that it's The Rock and HHH, the match wouldn't have to be for the title. HHH could still get his ego stroke by being in a high profile match with another huge star while people like Benoit and Jericho could have a title feud.

[The Naitch]

Let's hope that after 1 or 2 more movies, he gives Hollywood a break (to prevent over exposure) then that way he can come back to wrestling full time for a year or 2

[John la Rock]

Rock vs Orton and Rock vs Cena = :drool:

[BigDaddyCool]

Rock shouldn't come back till he has completely finished with Hollywood. He is still young and could make a comeback to wrestling in a few years, but for now he should stay out.

[Iceman90]

I think The Rock is OK how they use him now.

He has a GREAT opprotunity to become the biggest action star in Hollywood, and I say take it!

Good luck Rocky!

[Heyman]

I cant believe I am saying this but I agree with you Heyman

Must mean you are finally getting smarter.

Hey - maybe one day......you can actually write your own material! (and not plagiarize off of other sites ;)).

[Rock Bottom]

As much as I love The Rock... I mean I swear, I am his hugest fan... It's just not the right time. Appearances now and then to make people mark out are good. But... The last couple times he's come back, he's beaten the shi</>t out of people, then all the sudden he puts someone over and gets snuffed out. I think he should wait until full-time. He is a smart guy. He plays both sides excellently, and can be used practically ANYWHERE for any reason and bring ratings to it. I'm just afraid that Vince will get retarded again with all this young blood and use The Rock as a putting-over tool as he's been doing. He's always the guy that will lay down to the new names to give them the rub. Certain other people will not. And it blows.

Anyway, he'd better get a huge title haul when he gets back after he's been back for a while.

[Rock Bottom]

And Heyman, as far as The Rock getting boo'd again... He makes a killer heel. But you know what will happen after he is boo'd for too long? People will go, "I don't want to boo The Rock anymore" and cheer him, LoL. I agree that EVERY wrestler needs to take time off so they don't get stale. Including Rocky. But as far as boo's and pops for him, I think it'll forever be this intertwining rope. I love him as a heel, but I wish they would do it RIGHT. Have the cocky mouth-talking Rock that can still own anyone...

Instead they have him do the Triple H thing... He runs away like he is scared, but then all the sudden kicks someone's ass.

And the Rock/Goldberg match at Backlash, where The Rock was afraid to get in the ring made me cuss up a storm. That was so retarded. But the promo after the match was kinda funny.

[StrongMad]

i think he should. but then, they do need new stars and need to stop overkilling old ones (ric flair, hogan). so... im leaning both ways.

[Iceman90]

If The Rock is gone like he has been, it forces WWE to fill the Main Event spot with someone new.

Cena, Eddie, etc all get a chance to shine.

[Heyman]

If The Rock is gone like he has been, it forces WWE to fill the Main Event spot with someone new.

Cena, Eddie, etc all get a chance to shine.

Cena and Eddie are on Smackdown though.

As far as Raw goes, I think it's safe to say that Triple H has done a great job in burying all of the faces (i.e. RVD, Booker T, Jericho, etc.). Therefore - it's not like The Rock would be 'holding down' any of those guys anyways. You put The Rock on Raw (a face), and atleast you have a chance to create a new mega heel. Think about it - You put The Rock on there for a few months, make him look just as dominant as he once was, and then have him JOB to a guy like Randy Orton or Kane.

Voila - you have a new main-eventer.

[Rock Bottom]

Meh. The Rock jobs to too many people and puts them over. Way too many. Certain wrestlers need to stop crying like babies when it's their turn.

[The CyNick]

Would it be nice to see more of The Rock? Hell yeah, he's the best all around performer that exists today.

However, why would he come back full time? He makes over $10 million a picture, which I dont think he can make in a full year of wrestling, even if business was on fire (which it obviously isn't).

So where is the incentive for him to come back? Heyman, you seem to think that he is being over exposed in Hollywood, but really he's basically on a 2 movie per year pace, which is what most major actors do. Its all about striking while the iron is hot. He made his name in the WWE when they were on fire, and if he doesn't make an impact in Hollywood now, he will be forgetten about. So for Rock's movie career it makes no sense to go back to wrestling for any length of time because he will risk being brushed off to the side.

Rock has been on the go since he started his first solo movie. Between wrestling and shooting or promoting movies I dont think he's been off for more than a month at once. Right now he's committed to the movie he's doing, he's got Spy Hunter after that and then he has at least one more. So thats still over a year before he can even think about doing anything besides movies. And I would assume he'll want to take some down time after his last picture.

The way I see it, that'll likely mean he couldn't even consider coming back for any length of time until the Summer of '05. Like I said, it would be nice to see him more, because he's so good and of course he would do good for business, but it really makes no sense for him to come back to work a full schedule getting beat up for 6 months when he can get paid over $10 million without ever having to take a bump.

[John la Rock]

Is it just me or does The Rock look better and better (physique, wrestling ability)everytime he comes back?

[Kristanna Vola]

The time he came back in December that one time I thought he actually looked smaller. I couldn't tell to be honest on Raw this week, still trying to get use to The Rock with his goatee :p

I could care less if he ever wrestles again, I would love for him to be around for entertainment purposes though (announcer, have a Austin like role that doesn't take away air time every week.)

[BasicThuganomics]

Ok after reading this all I can think of is.....

How the **** do people think you're a good poster Heyman? I mean, you're occasionally entertaining i suppose. But all of the stuff you've posted in these discussions you keep doing are all bad ideas!

in the few discussions that i've read, you post your ideas and they suck, you argue your point over and over until someone (usually Cynick) completely proves you wrong and your ideas bad in just one post.

Sorry Heyman, i just laugh every time i read your posts.... they are so unbelievably bad its scary....
Yet the sad thing is that i've read most of them....

[PureHatred]

After reading this, the only thing I could think of is why is everyone assuming Rock has another movie in the works. That crap with Stifler didn't do huge box office numbers and I could swear I haven't read anything about Rocky being attached to any movies that are even in pre-production.

If he gets a movie deal I see no reason for him not to do it. You can't blame a man for making as much money as possible while he can. But if he doesn't and he stays off of house shows Rock might be part of the WWE for most of the year.

[CBright7831]

http://imdb.com/name/nm0425005/

Actor - filmography
(In Production) (2000s) (1990s)

Instant Karma (2005) (announced)
Spy Hunter (2005) (announced)
Be Cool (2004) (filming) (Joe Pescisa' first role since 1998)
Walking Tall (2004) (post-production) .... Chris Vaughn

[Shaggy]

The Rock wont return. Its probably just this one match and then off again. He has Spy Hunter to do now. Since he is with that project he should start doing that. I dont know if he already finished up his other project (not walking tall...there was another one) The Rock will probably just stay with his one match a year thing and thats it. Maybe an appearance here and there to keep the fans excited but that will be all.

[Gerard]

Rock shouldn't come back till he has completely finished with Hollywood. He is still young and could make a comeback to wrestling in a few years, but for now he should stay out.


^ what he said, i think all this 1 month here 2 month there appearences are basically pointless. Sure the fans go nuts when he comes back, but in the long run they probably get more annoyed by the fact he disappears for a load of months after that. He needs to come back for a long period (at least a year) before ducking out to hollywood again.

[BasicThuganomics]

LOL@ PureHatred, you just made yourself seem like such a dumbass!!! :lol:

Are you like an insider for the movie industry? :y:

[The Naitch]

He grabs the Rock donuts in between takes.

Be Cool with Joe Peschi seems like a money maker

[Mikey]

Must mean you are finally getting smarter.

Hey - maybe one day......you can actually write your own material! (and not plagiarize off of other sites ;)).


That is funny coming from a guy who said he was leaving and never going to come back :cool:

[BasicThuganomics]

He grabs the Rock donuts in between takes.

Be Cool with Joe Peschi seems like a money maker


John Travolta is in that also I think? These are the kind of roles Rock needs to do in order to really get noticed. Starring in movies with A-list actors like Travolta will probably help get him noticed.
It's kinda unrealistic to think that he can go straight from Wrestling, to being an automatic box-office draw. He needs to work his way up before he is really gonna be the next Stallone or Swarzenggar (sp?) if indeed he ever turns out to be that big in Hollywood.

[The Naitch]

John Travolta is in that also I think? These are the kind of roles Rock needs to do in order to really get noticed. Starring in movies with A-list actors like Travolta will probably help get him noticed.
It's kinda unrealistic to think that he can go straight from Wrestling, to being an automatic box-office draw. He needs to work his way up before he is really gonna be the next Stallone or Swarzenggar (sp?) if indeed he ever turns out to be that big in Hollywood.

Agreed. Isn't it the sequel to "Get Shorty"?

Anyways, Rock already proved to the industry that he CAN make it by himself. Now it's time to take it up a notch and to hang with the big boys (Travolta, Peschi) He plays a gay guy I believe. Hooking up with Travolta and Peschi will be a smart move.

I hope he doesn't do T4, because most people think that the Terminator series should die and be left at that. On the other hand, if Rock can make T4 a huge success, it will make him the man.

The Rock is better and more well rounded than that two dimensional Vin Diesel.

[BasicThuganomics]

Yeah, I like Vin Diesel kind of. He does a good job whenever he snaps and beats the shit outta people (such as in FastFurious and Man Apart) And I think that Diesel is a pretty decent actor when it comes to more serious roles. But Rock has more potential than Diesel because he is capable of doing comedies, and other roles that I don't think Vin could pull off. Rock of course has natural charisma that Vin doesn't have as much of I think.

And Rock is being supported in Hollywood by Arnold and Epert and Ropper (sp?) so that is a good thing. As for T4, I think it would be awesome for him to do. But I hope that Rock waits for the right script to do it. Arnold said he put off doing the sequels because he wanted to have a really good script for it. Rock should do the same and not do T4 unless the movie is deserving of a franchise as big as Terminator series is. He shouldn't just rush into doing the first script that he gets.

[Heyman]

Would it be nice to see more of The Rock? Hell yeah, he's the best all around performer that exists today.

However, why would he come back full time? He makes over $10 million a picture, which I dont think he can make in a full year of wrestling, even if business was on fire (which it obviously isn't).


True, but let's say The Rock keeps acting in films (without being on TV). His 'face' becomes less known, and his 'Rock' image starts to diminish. Pretty soon - he doesn't become as a big a draw anymore. Pretty soon - Producers stop paying him 'the big bucks'.

Perhaps if The Rock stayed on WWE TV (and kept a 'fresh face' amongst the fans), he would be more likely to be a draw in movie theatres....which means he would be more likely to get $10,000,000 per movie. :?:

[BasicThuganomics]

Yeah, maybe one day when the WWE is REALLY popular again, it would be a good idea to have The Rock come back for a long time, but right now he is doing fine I think. He doesn't need to come back to WWE to get a fresh face until WWE is actually popular again....

[AxelYoungblood]

I have never been a fan of the Rock, i mean, never (that wasn't intended as a punn lol), but I do agree that he is, was, and will continue to be good for business.
He does have to be used correctly though, just having him coming in and doing the job to people to put new stars over will damage his wrestling career in the long run.
I reckon a good idea would be to have him be face and let an up-coming heel get a few screw jobs over him on tv before loosing to "the great one" clean on PPV. that would work, I think.

It's funny, because I read somewhere, where somebody asked him if he preffered acting or wrestling, and he said "Wrestling, it's in my heart, it's in blood and it's in my herritage" (or something similar to that effect), if that's true then he has a funny way of showing it.

I reckon he'll just do a Hogan, dissapear and get his film career out of the way, then do a full time return to wrestling and play up to his "Icon" status for the rest of his career despite being shit.