– It’s worth pointing out that Randy Orton did not work this week’s RAW or SmackDown tapings. As things stand now, Orton is still advertised to work this weekend’s WWE live events in New York, as well as Monday’s RAW in Long Island.
– Goldust, who is still on the sidelines recovering from shoulder surgery, was recently working out with actor Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson. Björnsson is best known for his role on the HBO show “Game Of Thrones,” where he plays the character “The Mountain.” Goldust tweeted the following photo of the two together:
– The Rock has officially “cemented” his legacy — literally — at the famous TLC Chinese Theater in Hollywood. Below are some photos, which WWE tweeted today:
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson spoke to Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard blog this week to promote the release of his new disaster-adventure film, San Andreas.
The Rock spoke about a number of topics, including his days as a college football player, his iconic Attitude Era rivalry with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and his cousin Roman Reigns’ climb to the top of WWE. He also commented on whether he’ll be getting back in the ring at next year’s WrestleMania 32, as WWE looks to draw over 100,000 fans to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
“Myself, Vince, Triple H have talked about creating something that is amazing,” said Johnson. “Any time for me, going back into the WWE, especially if it’s a match – and these guys know this because of the open dialogue between me and Triple H – the question is, can we create, in terms of a promotional scale for the fans, something better than what we did in Miami and back-to-back in New York with John Cena? Can we put together something that’s different but equally, if not more, exciting?
So there’s a lot of elements involved that we continue to talk about and chop up. That’s the coolest part about the relationship I have with the McMahons, including Triple H.”
He added that he’s not ruling out the possibility of wrestling Triple H at next year’s Mania. “We continue to talk about it, and we’re still shooting each other text messages. He sent me a message from Dallas that said, ‘This could be us. The record is ours.’ So we’ll see.”
Dwyane “The Rock” Johnson will be reprising his role as Hobbs once again in the next installment of the ‘Fast and Furious’ franchise, according to a report at Collider. At a press event for his new disaster movie San Andreas, Johnson was asked if he’ll be returning to the franchise when Furious 8 hits theaters on April 14, 2017. He replied,
“Of course. It can’t go on without Hobbs.”
Studio heads have been so impressed with his performances in the Furious series (and the box office smackdown he delivers) that talks are already underway for a spinoff movie based on the Hobbs character. The Rock said:
“We all are interested in it. I just had a big conversation with the studio. So we’ll see. I still think for me personally we’ve created a little bit of space for him in 7 and the gauge is set for what the audience will want. That’s my take on it, you know, but a lot of other people have to have input.”
Savelina Fanene, cousin of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, made her NXT debut as ‘Lina’ at a live event this past Thursday.
She’s been signed to WWE developmental since last May, but was sidelined for several months after suffering a broken collarbone when she was injured in a head-on collision with a drunk driver.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Bruno Sammartino’s new documentary, “Bruno Sammartino: La Mia Mama,” premieres on Sunday, May 10th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The documentary, which focuses on his childhood and his family, airs on the CBS affiliate KDKA from 4-6pm and will be replayed from 8-10pm on the local CW station. Sammartino talks about the documentary in a new interview, which is available now at CBSLocal.com.
– The Rock’s cousin, Lina, made her official in-ring debut at a NXT Diva at the NXT live event in Jacksonville, Florida on Thursday night. Lina worked a six-Divas tag-match on the show. Below is a photo of her at the event.
The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) has been tapped to star in the new DreamWorks project, “Alpha Squad Seven,” a new science-fiction comedy.
According to the report, the project is described as a four-quadrant action-comedy adventure set in space, similar in many ways to Guardians of the Galaxy, Adrmageddon and Independence Day.
The idea behind the move is for it to serve a two-hander, as well as become the launching point for a potential new movie franchise.
Work for the project began about two weeks ago and producers approached The Rock and his 7 Bucks Production company, which fast-tracked the development of the concept.
Producer Beau Flynn is one of the people heading up the project. Flynn worked in the past with The Rock in films such as “Journey 2,” “Hercules” and “San Andreas.”
The Rock’s ex-wife, Dany Garcia, who heads up the Garcia Companies, will serve as executive producer for the project, while Hiram Garcia will associate produce through Rock’s 7 Bucks Production company.
Multiple studios were apparently bidding on the movie, but in the end, it came down to DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures with DreamWorks pursuing a bit harder to secure the project.
The feeling within the film industry is that this could be another huge role for The Rock, as they are hoping it will become another top franchise for the proven movie star.
What would happen if you attempted to eat like The Rock for a day? Sean Evans of Complex.com was recently dared by a co-worker to attempt The Rock’s dietand now has a newfound respect for the nutrition that goes into developing and maintaining The Rock’s 260-pound chiseled physique.
Here’s Evan’s recap of the experience (via YouTube):
“Now, I’m no world class athlete. But, compared to the other chain smoking Internet bloggers in the Time & Life building, I’m Bo Jackson. I’m not saying that to brag. I’m saying that to explain how/why I was pegged to live a day as The Rock and how/why I failed so miserably.
Each meal (and there were SEVEN of them) weighed as much as a Range Rover tire. I’d be forking food into my mouth for five straight minutes, and the plate would look exactly as it did when it was put in front of me. Eating became as psychologically taxing as it was physically painful, but—as someone who can eat a whole frozen pizza like it’s nothing—the volume of food isn’t what derailed me.
You see, not only does The Rock eat A LOT of food, but everything he eats tastes like butt. When Complex asked me to do this project, I kept my aversion to fish a secret which in retrospect was probably a mistake. The Rock eats three pounds of cod on the daily. While I might’ve been able to wolf down one eight ounce filet Fear Factor-style, it was the featured entree in almost every meal. I knew by 10 a.m. that it was going to be a long, shitty day. I was constantly dreading the next meal, which had as much to do with hating the food as it did with being ridiculously full.
Ultimately, I failed to complete The Rock Challenge, but quite frankly it was fool’s errand from the jump. I still wear size 30 jeans like I’m a sophomore in high school. Dwayne Johnson, on the other hand, weighs close to 300 pounds and has a body that burns fuel like a furnace. Yet, for whatever reason (probably to make me puke on Internet TV), we didn’t compromise the diet a single calorie.
I walk away with a newfound respect for Johnson. He’s an athlete-turned-professional wrestling icon-turned box office draw, and, at 43 years old, still wakes up at 4 a.m. so he can mainline sweet potatoes and flip monster truck tires. That sort of career path doesn’t happen unless you have something freakish driving you. If it took you a 20-something media guy hurling in his office bathroom to prove that, then you’re welcome, I guess.”
– WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler returned to the ring this past Saturday night at a Maryland Championship Wrestling event in Waldorf, MD. Lawler and MCW Champion The Bruiser defeated Ryann McBride, Ken Dixon and Justin Schlegal in a handicap match.
– Former NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte continues to tease that she’ll be making an appearance at tonight’s WWE RAW from Montreal.
– WWE Diva Tamina Snuka made her in-ring return during the company’s recent European tour. Most recently, Snuka has been working as a bodyguard for Naomi during non-televised WWE live events. There is no definitive word yet as to whether or not they will be using Snuka and Naomi as a pair on television, however WWE generally tends to try matches and angles out on live events before bringing them to television, so it’s definitely a possibility.
– WWE performer and movie star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson recently took to Instagram to extend some praise for WWE Diva Eva Marie. “The Great One” wrote the following:
“Thank you to my homegirl Eva Marie for this very cool birthday message. What impresses me most about her is that she has a certain drive and determination that can only come from someone who knows what it’s like to have been down and to have struggled. Eva’s struggle has clearly created a fierce focus in her which is so cool to see and here’s the best part… she’s willin’ to put in the daily hard ass work to achieve and accomplish all of her goals in — and outside of the ring. It’s a real pleasure working with and mentoring this woman. Road is long and we’re just gettin’ started.. Plus I gave my word to our agent @bslater9 that I’ll make sure she always handles her business like a straight up G. #FutureWWEDivaChamp #OD #LetsGetToWork”
– WWE Hall Of Famer Mick Foley noted on Twitter that the four teeth that were damaged in his infamous 1998 Hell In A Cell match with The Undertaker at the King Of The Ring pay-per-view will have to be replaced. “The Hardcore Legend” tweeted the following:
WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently updated his official blog with thoughts on a number of big topics. Below are some highlights.
On Mayweather-Pacquiao: “Still going with @FloydMayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao but if it works out that Manny wins a split decision or with a shocking KO, a second fight would be in order meaning even MORE money for all involved. That second fight would be a hit in AT&T Stadium which is the home of WrestleMania 32 and the Dallas Cowboys. The chance to sell 100,000+ tickets is too good to not consider. If there is no controversy tonight in Vegas, I will be shocked.”
On Ronda Rousey vs. Stephanie McMahon: “For those putting down my idea of @RondaRousey vs. Stephanie McMahon for WM32 your logic is a head scratcher to me. I see it as a no brainer and potentially one of the biggest “attraction matches” ever in WWE. The villain stacks the deck and the heroine overcomes. It’s a 10-15 minute presentation bell to bell and it would sell tickets, WWE Network subscriptions and garner amazing media coverage. Yes, I know that UFC head honcho Dana White as said no but is that merely laying the ground work for an arrangement for UFC to cut a deal with WWE to promote UFC PPV’s on the WWE Network at some point in the future? Lots of things can change between now and early 2016.”
On The Rock: “Happy Birthday to @TheRock who has achieved unparalleled success since we signed him to a WWE Contract back in the day and where he was “discovered” by Hollywood. He told me on day one that he was going to be “your top guy” and he wasn’t being arrogant but merely confident and believing in himself. Rock is living proof that good things happen to good people who refuse to finish second. WWE hasn’t had any two talents with more natural chemistry than Rock and Austin who headlined three, WrestleMania events.”
– The Thursday, April 30th edition of WWE SmackDown averaged 2.338 million viewers, down from the previous week’s show, which averaged 2.642 million viewers. This week’s number marks the lowest viewership that SmackDown has had since moving back to Thursday nights.
– Longtime WWE performer The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) is celebrating his 43rd birthday today. The Rock was born on May 2, 1972.
– WWE has released a clip from Mick Foley’s recent “Cheap Pops” live WWE Network special. In the following clip, Foley talks about his relationship with WWE Divas.
– Dean Ambrose’s win over Luke Harper in the Chicago Street Fight at Extreme Rules was Ambrose’s first PPV win since The Shield broke up last year. This was Ambrose’s first singles victory on PPV since defending the United States Title against Dolph Ziggler at Night of Champions 2013.
– Last night’s ring announcing duties at Extreme Rules were handled by Eden and JoJo, since Lilian Garcia is still out recovering form surgery. This was JoJo’s pay-per-view debut. Lilian spent the night live-tweeting the show from home.
– The Rock was in attendance for last night’s Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers NBA playoff game from Boston’s TD Garden. Here he is with a Bronze Star Marine who the Celtics honored as their “Hero Among Us” for the night:
– The Rock’s movie Furious 7 continues to crush it at the box office. Already in the top 10 highest grossing movies of all time, it’s taken in over 800 million dollars in less than two weeks. It’s expected to finish at about $350 domestic and $850 foreign, for a total of $1.2 billion. Furious 7 will take in more revenue this year than WWE and UFC combined.
– Jey Uso undergoing surgery and being out of action for the next 6 months is the reason the Lucha Dragons were called up to the main roster the night after WrestleMania 31. With the Usos on hold until the end of the year, WWE needed to quickly elevate a new babyface tag team to challenge Kidd & Cesaro, which is why we’ve seen the Dragons on such a roll in recent weeks.
– Former TNA Knockout (Sarah Stock/Dark Angel from CMLL) was at the WWE Performance Center this week as a guest trainer teaching Lucha style.
– UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey is the guest on the latest edition of Roddy Piper’s “Piper’s PIt” podcast. You can download the show right now at PodcastOne.com.
– As noted earlier today, NXT standout Finn Balor will be backstage at Monday’s edition of WWE RAW, which emanates from the O2 Arena in London, England. Balor posted the following teaser on his official Twitter account for tonight’s show.
– The latest edition of WWE’s “What’s Wrong With This Video?” web-series, which you can see below, features ten mistakes purposely added to The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan match from WrestleMania.
HBO has released the first official trailer for Ballers, the new half-hour ‘dramedy’ series starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson that premieres June 21st.
Ballers follows a group of former and current football stars living in Miami. Johnson stars and is also an Executive Producer, along with his Pain & Gain co-star Mark Wahlberg (‘Entourage’).
The cast also includes Omar Benson Miller (‘CSI: Miami’), John David Washington (son of Denzel Washington) and Rob Corddry (‘Childrens Hospital’).
– The official WWE website has a new poll up asking fans who they would like to see Sting face next in WWE. With over 25,000 votes, The Undertaker is in a comanding lead with 62 percent of the vote. Triple H follows with 14 percent of the vote, while the other options, which includes Seth Rollins, Brock Lesnar, Bray Wyatt and The Rock, all have six percent. You can vote on the poll right now at WWE.com.
– Chris Jericho’s new “Nothing To Report” Comedy Central web series is scheduled to premiere this Monday on YouTube and on Comedy Central’s official website. Jericho filmed the show last summer along with Nick Mundy.
– WWE Diva Cameron is giving away a 2015 “prom package” to one lucky fan with a custom prom dress, hair and make-up. Check out the video below for more details.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan’s ex-wife Linda Hogan is selling the California home she purchased for $3.5 million in 2010. Linda is asking for $5.5 million for the 24-acre property. For photos of the home, visit Homes.Yahoo.com.
– The Rock announced on Twitter that his new HBO show “Ballers” will be premiering on Sunday, June 21st at 10pm. That means Rock’s show will have an excellent lead-in, as the new season of True Detective premieres on the same date one hour earlier, and will serve as the lead-in to The Rock’s show each week.
– WWE recently applied for a number of new trademarks. WWE has applied to trademark the term “Superfriends Crew,” possibly for a new stable. They also applied for “New Face of Fear” for Bray Wyatt, “Lone Wolf” for Baron Corbin, “The Vigilante” for Sting, “Anti-Diva” for Paige, “The Beast Within” for Brock Lesnar, and other terms such as Starrcade, Halloween Havoc and WWE Nation.
– UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey has signed with Dany Garcia, The Rock’s ex-wife and business partner, to be her new business manager. With a budding movie career (Fast 7, The Expendables 3) and a new book coming out next month, it will be interesting to see what’s next from UFC’s most dangerous female fighter.
It’s worth noting that Rousey and The Rock also share the same agent, Brad Slater.
– It’s believed that stipulations will be added to the Seth Rollins vs. Randy Orton WWE title match and John Cena vs. Rusev U.S. title match at the upcoming Extreme Rules pay-per-view. Also expected for the PPV is Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler in singles action, and either Big Show vs. Roman Reigns or Big Show & Kane vs. Roman Reigns & Ryback. Already scheduled for Extreme Rules, in addition to the two aforementioned title matches, is an Intercontinental Championship bout between Daniel Bryan and Bad News Barrett.
John Cena mentioned during his appearance on Chris Jericho’s podcast this past Monday night that he was close enough to turning heel during his feud with The Rock that he recorded new theme music and had new ring gear made.
Cena spent approximately $5,000 to have new gear made, however he ultimately cancelled the order before it was officially made. Cena told the seamstress, Sue Kotulski, to use the money he spent on new attire for the WWE talents in developmental instead of giving him a refund.
Eventually, Cena went to WWE developmental, which was in Tampa at the time, and told the same story in what ended up being referred to as “The Cena Scholarship.” Each month, coaches in WWE’s developmental system voted on who the most outstanding talents of the month were. Whoever received the most votes would get a $500 credit towards having new gear made by Kotulski.
When Triple H and The Rock shot an angle during a backstage promo segment on last year’s anniversary edition of WWE SmackDown, there was an understanding that it would lead to a WrestleMania match involving the two.
The reason Triple H vs. The Rock didn’t happen at WrestleMania 31 earlier this year was because The Rock’s schedule was not going to allow him to go through with it. Rock was busy with a long list of media obligations tied to his role in the current box office smash, “Furious 7.” As it turned out, Rock was able to fly to Santa Clara on the day of the event for a promo segment, but nothing more.
When the realization that Rock wouldn’t be able to work a match became clear, that’s when the idea of Triple H vs. Sting became the new direction. When that was decided, it was agreed that HHH would win the match with Sting, keeping him strong and in position heading into WrestleMania 32 to work the originally planned match with The Rock.
As things stand now, Triple H vs. Rock is still the match WWE hopes to promote as one of the special attraction main events for next year’s WrestleMania, however it’s dependent upon a number of factors, most of which remain to be seen, such as Rock’s movie schedule for the next year.
As noted earlier as part of the Tough Enough premiere date announcement (6/23), WWE SmackDown is moving to the USA Network in the first quarter of 2016. While WWE’s official press release made no mention of SmackDown going live each week, Variety.com writes:
“USA Network is doubling down on WWE, bringing ‘SmackDown’ over from Syfy next year as part of an effort to hike the volume of live programming on NBCUniversal’s flagship entertainment cabler.”
Variety.com also revealed that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his manager Dany Garcia have signed on to develop and executive produce an unscripted television series for USA through their 7 Bucks Productions.
On a four-hour pay-per-view for WrestleMania 31 this year, the longest match was just 18 minutes and 34 seconds — Triple H vs. Sting. The WWE World Heavyweight Championship match between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns was the second longest match on the main card, coming in at 16 minutes and 44 seconds. The Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal on the Kickoff Show lasted 18 minutes and 8 seconds.
Regarding timing issues at this year’s WrestleMania, the main event was supposed to last about ten minutes longer than it did. The segment with The Rock and Ronda Rousey ended up going 24 minutes long, with WWE officials originally looking at cutting time off of the Bray Wyatt vs. Undertaker match to make up for it. Instead, the decision was made to chop the time off of the Lesnar-Reigns title match.
– The Rock’s new movie Furious 7 had a massive opening weekend at the box office. The film grossed a staggering $384 million worldwide, with $143 million coming from theaters in the United States.
Not only was this the biggest opening weekend for The Rock and the franchise, (“Fast & Furious 6” did $97.3 million domestic back in 2013), but Fast 7 was the 9th biggest opening weekend in Hollywood history.
– Tonight immediately after WWE RAW, WWE presents the premiere episode of “Live! With Chris Jericho” on the WWE Network. Jericho will interview new United States Champion, John Cena. Here’s WWE’s official preview for the show:
After her appearance at WrestleMania, Rousey tweeted that it was “just the beginning.” However, UFC stated last week that her appearance at WrestleMania 31 was a “one off” appearance. That said, WWE officials are still hoping to use Rousey again in the future in a match with Stephanie McMahon. Whether it’s Rousey vs. Steph or Rock and Rousey vs. Triple H and Steph in a mixed tag match, you can bet WWE will do everything they can to once again acquire the services of the box office phenomenon.
– The new documentary on the life and career of The Iron Sheik is now available on Netflix.
– The Rock’s new film, “Furious 7,” opened to an estimated $56 million to $60 million on Friday night.
– Speaking of The Rock, the following is a segment from the new “Lip Sync Battle” show which features The Rock performing Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off” against Jimmy Fallon on the premiere episode.
– Below is Byron Saxton’s full sit-down interview with Roman Reigns, which aired on this week’s SmackDown. During the interview, Reigns claims he would have beaten Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 31 if he had 30 more seconds, and promises to beat Seth Rollins again.
coming out next month, it will be interesting to see what’s next from UFC’s most dangerous female fighter.