Rock Bottom
04-02-2004, 11:36 PM
From the TPWW newsboard.
By Chris Walters on April 2, 2004 at 12:30 PM EST
NEW YORK (The Associated Press) - As a former wrestler and a movie action star, it’s hard to imagine The Rock being rattled by much in life. But he says he was “really antsy” when he had to take on a dramatic scene in his new movie “Walking Tall.”
“I wasn’t insecure as much as I was really antsy,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press.
But working with an acting coach apparently paid off, as the cast and crew gave him a standing ovation when his big courtroom scene was over, a response The Rock called “really cool.”
Things weren’t always so rosy when the pro wrestler-turned-actor also known as Dwayne Johnson first flexed his dramatic muscles, The Rock said, recalling his first TV acting gig back in 1999.
“It’s the worst piece of acting you have ever seen. I watched it back like six months ago, and I barely kept my food down. It was that bad.”
Regardless of his success at acting or the box office, The Rock said he still holds a special place for wrestling and envisions a return.
“I’d like to go back once or twice a year. I would love that. It’s like when other actors — and understandably so — when they go back to theater,” he said. “Wrestling has been my theater.”
“Walking Tall,” which also stars Johnny Knoxville and Ashley Scott, opens Friday.
--------------------
Ugh. Here I was, thinking The Rock was only going to do 'Mania this year, and so I figure, I'll deal with it. But with this arising, if it comes from the horse's (or in this case, the Brahma Bull's) mouth himself, my hope just dwindled.
Hi, I am probably the biggest Rock fan on the face of the universe. To the point in which I might actually hurl insults at someone who claims the same. Dating all the way back to Rocky Maivia, the baby-kissing face, with the untamed afro... In his TV debut against Goldust and some big fat guy with a beard. All the way through Die, Rocky, Die, I was probably one of the very few going, Rocky doesn't suck. Mind you, I was in my younger teens. So don't take it as such a surprise. To this day I still search for more of his dark matches, clips of Flex Kavana, and all kinds of uncommon sh</>it.
Then the angle turned, where Rocky Maivia became a heel, and as much WWE tried to make me hate him, I didn't. I was markish enough to even agree with his promos, "I was the youngest Intercontinental Champ, and I worked my ass off, how dare you all boo me?" Rocky continued getting heat with the Nation until he was probably the biggest form of a heel. People would throw shit at him, people would sound psychotic in saying, "Die, Rocky, Die."
The Rock was given mic time. And though people still hated him, he was more than successful and he was put on the map as a real superstar, given some good feuds with DX members, namely Triple H... Steve Austin. The big boys. The Rock grew and grew, until finally, The Rock was the People's Champ. The buzz about The Rock continued to pick up as he turned face, with a whole new design to mic-time, a twist that melded perfectly with the new attitude era headlined by Stone Cold Steve Austin.
The Rock's following was beginning to grow due to this, however, he was not going to compare to the fire and momentum of the Rattlesnake. Yet. Then, at the Survivor Series Deadly Game, The Rock got a huge push. He had a victory over a guy in four seconds (yet another record for The Rock, and though a few of them have been broken since, this is not one. I only say this because he was breaking records.) He beat Ken Shamrock after the "interception" of the night-stick. He wasn't quite ready to go over 'Taker clean, but he won via DQ when Kane chokeslammed him. And then he went on to turn heel in the screwjob (kayfabe) of Mankind. The Rock, all the sudden, was the new WWF champion for the first time.
A feud started, as the corporation was formed, between The Rock and Stone Cold. At the same time, also, Rock had a more personal feud with Mankind. The Rock was now the top heel in the company, feuding with the top face, both of them talents that the WWE decided to let step up to the plate. And did they ever. They put on, in that time period, the greatest feud you could hope for. Rock and Austin worked hard, and in the end, The Rock put Austin over clean at 'Mania, and the fans were getting into it.
Rock and Austin's feud would continue, until probably one of the coolest face turns happened when McMahon slapped The Rock. Rock gave him the Rock Bottom, and bam, just like that, the people who were fed excuses to deny The Rock's charisma, who wanted to cheer him all along, got their chance.
Rock was on a roll, on the mic, and continued getting a steady push. He would go on, and on, and on, each week, each month, looking sharper, and being more entertaining than the last. More and more people jumped on The Rock, he was the sh</>it.
Over the years, this would continue. People loved The Rock. He was up there with Austin. Number two, Rock vs. Austin at 'Mania occured. And this time, the tables turned, as Austin became the heel and The Rock the face, when Austin aligned himself with McMahon.
And finally, Rock vs. Austin number three, where The Rock went over clean, as Austin did something very cool for The Rock in passing the torch. I just about marked out. Here was a guy who had put over alot of guys, was willing to work just about anything, and he got the big one at 'Mania over the guy who brought this generation into the attitude era.
Shortly after, and by shortly, I mean a month, The Rock jobbed to Goldberg. Meh, I was pissed. The Rock was like, right there man, he could have been on a huge roll after coming off a clean Austin victory (which VERY few people have), and here comes this big ass hoss. I'm not blaming Goldberg ultimately, we all knew The Rock was going off to film a movie. Rocky would be Goldberg's stepping stone in the WWE. Congratulations Goldberg, eat up, while you're off filming and bitching about not being used properly, you just got fed a big Rock burger, one of the biggest icons today. Then a year later you ate the guy who also enjoyed a piece of The Rock.
Pretty god damn sad, that Rocky took HUGE chunks of his own work, and said here guys, have some! And now they're gone because their characters haven't been USED RIGHT? Anyway, that ain't what this is about. Rock came back as more of a cameo, a couple times on RAW, and at 'Mania to help out Foley. And even though I knew it'd be his only match this year, I enjoyed it, because it was another way to see The Rock back in the WWE.
But now, that's done. And so this comes up. The Rock wants to return once or twice to the ring. I think The Rock is very subtly breaking away (not subtle in terms of obviousness, but in terms of, slowly but surely) from wrestling. I've enjoyed all The Rock's movies, and I'm sure he is making mad loot... But I don't think there will ever be one movie that I will ever enjoy more than seeing him in the WWE ring. Rock, you were my replacement for Bret Hart. That is a tough, TOUGH act I may add, to follow. You became my all-time favorite. And if you're really gone, I just want to say, thank you for all you've done, and there will never be a guy I will enjoy more in the sport of wrestling. I'll go see all your movies, I'll watch you on TV. I wish you the best, and even if you do only come back once a year, you will not see anyone mark out more than me. And if people don't share the same sentiments, I will gladly be one of the few who still chant The Rock's name when the masses say that Rocky sucks.
By Chris Walters on April 2, 2004 at 12:30 PM EST
NEW YORK (The Associated Press) - As a former wrestler and a movie action star, it’s hard to imagine The Rock being rattled by much in life. But he says he was “really antsy” when he had to take on a dramatic scene in his new movie “Walking Tall.”
“I wasn’t insecure as much as I was really antsy,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press.
But working with an acting coach apparently paid off, as the cast and crew gave him a standing ovation when his big courtroom scene was over, a response The Rock called “really cool.”
Things weren’t always so rosy when the pro wrestler-turned-actor also known as Dwayne Johnson first flexed his dramatic muscles, The Rock said, recalling his first TV acting gig back in 1999.
“It’s the worst piece of acting you have ever seen. I watched it back like six months ago, and I barely kept my food down. It was that bad.”
Regardless of his success at acting or the box office, The Rock said he still holds a special place for wrestling and envisions a return.
“I’d like to go back once or twice a year. I would love that. It’s like when other actors — and understandably so — when they go back to theater,” he said. “Wrestling has been my theater.”
“Walking Tall,” which also stars Johnny Knoxville and Ashley Scott, opens Friday.
--------------------
Ugh. Here I was, thinking The Rock was only going to do 'Mania this year, and so I figure, I'll deal with it. But with this arising, if it comes from the horse's (or in this case, the Brahma Bull's) mouth himself, my hope just dwindled.
Hi, I am probably the biggest Rock fan on the face of the universe. To the point in which I might actually hurl insults at someone who claims the same. Dating all the way back to Rocky Maivia, the baby-kissing face, with the untamed afro... In his TV debut against Goldust and some big fat guy with a beard. All the way through Die, Rocky, Die, I was probably one of the very few going, Rocky doesn't suck. Mind you, I was in my younger teens. So don't take it as such a surprise. To this day I still search for more of his dark matches, clips of Flex Kavana, and all kinds of uncommon sh</>it.
Then the angle turned, where Rocky Maivia became a heel, and as much WWE tried to make me hate him, I didn't. I was markish enough to even agree with his promos, "I was the youngest Intercontinental Champ, and I worked my ass off, how dare you all boo me?" Rocky continued getting heat with the Nation until he was probably the biggest form of a heel. People would throw shit at him, people would sound psychotic in saying, "Die, Rocky, Die."
The Rock was given mic time. And though people still hated him, he was more than successful and he was put on the map as a real superstar, given some good feuds with DX members, namely Triple H... Steve Austin. The big boys. The Rock grew and grew, until finally, The Rock was the People's Champ. The buzz about The Rock continued to pick up as he turned face, with a whole new design to mic-time, a twist that melded perfectly with the new attitude era headlined by Stone Cold Steve Austin.
The Rock's following was beginning to grow due to this, however, he was not going to compare to the fire and momentum of the Rattlesnake. Yet. Then, at the Survivor Series Deadly Game, The Rock got a huge push. He had a victory over a guy in four seconds (yet another record for The Rock, and though a few of them have been broken since, this is not one. I only say this because he was breaking records.) He beat Ken Shamrock after the "interception" of the night-stick. He wasn't quite ready to go over 'Taker clean, but he won via DQ when Kane chokeslammed him. And then he went on to turn heel in the screwjob (kayfabe) of Mankind. The Rock, all the sudden, was the new WWF champion for the first time.
A feud started, as the corporation was formed, between The Rock and Stone Cold. At the same time, also, Rock had a more personal feud with Mankind. The Rock was now the top heel in the company, feuding with the top face, both of them talents that the WWE decided to let step up to the plate. And did they ever. They put on, in that time period, the greatest feud you could hope for. Rock and Austin worked hard, and in the end, The Rock put Austin over clean at 'Mania, and the fans were getting into it.
Rock and Austin's feud would continue, until probably one of the coolest face turns happened when McMahon slapped The Rock. Rock gave him the Rock Bottom, and bam, just like that, the people who were fed excuses to deny The Rock's charisma, who wanted to cheer him all along, got their chance.
Rock was on a roll, on the mic, and continued getting a steady push. He would go on, and on, and on, each week, each month, looking sharper, and being more entertaining than the last. More and more people jumped on The Rock, he was the sh</>it.
Over the years, this would continue. People loved The Rock. He was up there with Austin. Number two, Rock vs. Austin at 'Mania occured. And this time, the tables turned, as Austin became the heel and The Rock the face, when Austin aligned himself with McMahon.
And finally, Rock vs. Austin number three, where The Rock went over clean, as Austin did something very cool for The Rock in passing the torch. I just about marked out. Here was a guy who had put over alot of guys, was willing to work just about anything, and he got the big one at 'Mania over the guy who brought this generation into the attitude era.
Shortly after, and by shortly, I mean a month, The Rock jobbed to Goldberg. Meh, I was pissed. The Rock was like, right there man, he could have been on a huge roll after coming off a clean Austin victory (which VERY few people have), and here comes this big ass hoss. I'm not blaming Goldberg ultimately, we all knew The Rock was going off to film a movie. Rocky would be Goldberg's stepping stone in the WWE. Congratulations Goldberg, eat up, while you're off filming and bitching about not being used properly, you just got fed a big Rock burger, one of the biggest icons today. Then a year later you ate the guy who also enjoyed a piece of The Rock.
Pretty god damn sad, that Rocky took HUGE chunks of his own work, and said here guys, have some! And now they're gone because their characters haven't been USED RIGHT? Anyway, that ain't what this is about. Rock came back as more of a cameo, a couple times on RAW, and at 'Mania to help out Foley. And even though I knew it'd be his only match this year, I enjoyed it, because it was another way to see The Rock back in the WWE.
But now, that's done. And so this comes up. The Rock wants to return once or twice to the ring. I think The Rock is very subtly breaking away (not subtle in terms of obviousness, but in terms of, slowly but surely) from wrestling. I've enjoyed all The Rock's movies, and I'm sure he is making mad loot... But I don't think there will ever be one movie that I will ever enjoy more than seeing him in the WWE ring. Rock, you were my replacement for Bret Hart. That is a tough, TOUGH act I may add, to follow. You became my all-time favorite. And if you're really gone, I just want to say, thank you for all you've done, and there will never be a guy I will enjoy more in the sport of wrestling. I'll go see all your movies, I'll watch you on TV. I wish you the best, and even if you do only come back once a year, you will not see anyone mark out more than me. And if people don't share the same sentiments, I will gladly be one of the few who still chant The Rock's name when the masses say that Rocky sucks.