“It was one after the other”
Dwayne Johnson has revealed that he has been approached several times to run for US president.
The Black Adam actor revealed on Trevor Noah’s new podcast, Why Now?, that a 2021 poll of 30,000 American adults led to him being contacted about his interest in running for presidency at the end of 2022.
“I was really moved by that,” Johnson said. “I was really blown away and I was really honoured.”
The former WWE wrestler added, “I’ll share this little bit with you: 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.”
Dwayne Johnson on December 07, 2021 in Santa Monica, California. CREDIT: Getty/Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for DJ
“It was a big deal, and it came out of the blue,” he continued. “It was one after the other, and they brought up that poll, and 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]. It was all very surreal because that’s never been my goal. My goal has never been to be in politics. As a matter of fact, there’s a lot about politics that I hate.”
However, this isn’t the first time Johnson has been mentioned in association with the presidential run. Not only did his sitcom, Young Rock, centre around himself running for president, but he also told Variety that the 2024 presidential campaign was “a realistic consideration”.
What’s more, Johnson responded to the supportive poll on X/Twitter: “I don’t think 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 honour to serve you, the people.”
On the podcast he added that his work has an impact on his home life and time with his daughter. He said: “That was one of my primary discussions with the parties.”
However, he didn’t seem to completely rule out the possibility of running saying, “If that’s ultimately what the people would want, then of course I would consider it.”
Elsewhere, Johnson has asked a Paris museum for the skin colour of his waxwork model to be updated, following mockery online.
