Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson truly embodies dedication to his craft, as evidenced in a recent expansive cover story with GQ, published on Monday. The action movie icon partially corroborated details from a recent The Wrap report, which alleged he would "pee in a bottle" and was occasionally tardy to the set of his latest Christmas flick, "Red One."
When probed about the latter assertion, Johnson admitted, "Yeah, that happens." Addressing The Wrap's claim that he was habitually late by as much as eight hours, he clarified to GQ, "It wasn't that amount." He further emphasized, "That's an outrageous amount. It's insane. Absolutely ridiculous." USA TODAY has contacted Johnson's representatives for additional commentary.
In April, The Wrap reported that Johnson's tardiness and the producers' inexperience had led to costly delays for Amazon MGM's festive comedy "Red One," totaling a staggering $250 million. Both Johnson and Amazon MGM's reps refuted these accusations at the time.
Jake Kasdan, the director of "Red One" and a frequent collaborator with the former wrestler on films like "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" and "Jumanji: The Next Level," echoed a positive sentiment to GQ. He stated that Johnson "never missed a day of work ever. He has a lot on his plate, and while he can be late occasionally, that's just the nature of Hollywood." Kasdan added, "I've always witnessed him treating everyone on set with utmost respect."
Chris Evans, Johnson's co-star, also shared his admiration. Evans remarked that, compared to other actors who were "unaware of others' time and efforts" and "unpredictable," Johnson was a breath of fresh air. "We all know exactly what he's going to do and when he's going to do it," Evans noted.
Evans reminisced about "$5 Fridays" on set, a tradition where daily raffles are held with contributions from the crew. Stars typically don't participate but are expected to contribute financially. Evans recounted a day when Johnson went above and beyond. "I'm really not exaggerating," he prefaced. "The pot had reached four or five thousand dollars, and before they drew the winner's name, Dwayne asked, 'What's the pot at right now?' Someone replied, 'I don't know, maybe four grand.' And he said, 'Let's make it twenty.'"
