Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson revealed that he had been approached by political parties to run in the next US election.
The 51-year-old movie star previously expressed interest in getting into politics.
A 2021 poll showed that nearly half of Americans would vote for Johnson if he ran for president.
A recent interview revealed how close he actually got, when the “Jumanji” star explained that he had been approached by multiple political parties about getting on the ballot.
🚨Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson told Trevor Noah on his new podcast “What Now” that he was asked repeatedly by political parties last year to run for President. pic.twitter.com/2a7FU08sFv
— Sociat USA 🇺🇸 (@SociatUSA) November 10, 2023
“At the end of the year in 2022, I got a visit from the parties asking me if I was going to run, and if I could run,” he told “What Now?” podcast host Trevor Noah.
The former professional wrestler was touched by the poll results, which found that 46% of American’s supported Johnson.
Respondents were also asked to rank other celebrities as presidential candidates, and The Rock scored 16% higher than any of the other stars in the April 2021 poll.
Angelina Jolie came in second place with 30%, while Oprah Winfrey scored 27% of the people’s support, while “Cast Away” star Tom Hanks earned the trust of 22% of Americans.
“That was an interesting poll that happened and I was really moved by that. I was really blown away and I was really honored,” he told Noah.
He shared a similar sentiment when he reacted to the poll on Twitter in 2021.
Not sure our Founding Fathers ever envisioned a six-four, bald, tattooed, half-Black, half-Samoan, tequila drinking, pick up truck driving, fanny pack wearing guy joining their club – but if it ever happens it’d be my honor to serve the people 🙏🏾💪🏾🇺🇸 https://t.co/6Xd9ADzqX7
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) April 9, 2021
“Not sure our Founding Fathers ever envisioned a six-four, bald, tattooed, half-Black, half-Samoan, tequila drinking, pick up truck driving, fanny pack wearing guy joining their club,” he wrote.
“But if it ever happens it’d be my honor to serve the people.
The “Black Adam” star opted not to disclose the political parties that approached him last year.
However he has historically supported Democratic presidential candidates, voting for former President Barack Obama in both 2008 and 2012, along with endorsing President Joe Biden in 2020.
“It was a big deal, and it came out of the blue. It was one after the other, and they brought up that poll,” he noted.
Each of the parties also came prepared to sway him to run under their banner.
“They also brought up their own deep-dive research that would prove that should I ever go down that road [I’d be a real contender],” the “Baywatch” star added.
The Rock said that his “goal was never to be in politics,” pointing out that there’s a lot about it that he hates.
Speculation about his political future started back in 2016 when he was riding high off of the success of disaster flick “San Andreas” and the previous year’s “Fast & Furious” installment.
He told GQ that the idea of heading the country was “alluring,” and stoked the public’s interest when he told Ellen DeGeneres that he was “seriously” considering running in 2017.
In an interview with Sunday TODAY the same year, he stated, “I do have that goal to unite our country and I also feel that if this is what the people want, then I will do that.”
In 2018, he told “The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert that he would consider a run in 2024 or 2028, after he could “get some experience and understand policy.”
An February 2021 interview with USA Today seemed to be a catalyst for the poll, which was taken two months later.
“I would consider a presidential run in the future if that’s what the people wanted,” Johnson remarked.
“Truly I mean that, and I’m not flippant in any way with my answer. That would be up to the people”
“So I would wait, and I would listen. I would have my finger on the pulse, my ear to the ground,” he concluded.