Referring to himself in the third person was always a key part of his professional wrestling persona, and it appears that Dwayne Johnson still hasn’t abandoned the notion of referring to himself and The Rock as two separate entities.
As the former WWE icon evolved into the biggest star in Hollywood, even the way he was credited in the marketing of his early projects was an indicator that he was attempting to leave his past behind; first of all he was “The Rock,” then he went through a Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson phase, before becoming plain old Dwayne Johnson, or DJ to his nearest and dearest.
However, when the conversation turns to the never-ending speculation that he could end up being the latest celebrity to take a tilt at the highest office in the land – something that would see him snatch the torch away from Arnold Schwarzenegger better than that brief cameo in The Rundown ever could – it was back to the split personality approach.
Ironically, one of the framing devices in NBC sitcom Young Rock was the “present-day” storyline that saw Johnson in the midst of a presidential campaign, but seeing as the series was recently canceled after three seasons, maybe the 51 year-old will be more tempted than ever before to try and make it a reality.
Either that, or he’ll quite happily pocket $50 million paydays for action blockbusters, which sounds infinitely easier and a lot less stressful than upending his entire existence to enter an arena he isn’t remotely qualified for.