The Rock Confirms Heel Turn While Calling Out Reporter For Hawaii’s Tragic Events Blast
Highlights
- The Rock confirms he has turned heel in WWE, as hinted at in recent press conferences and SmackDown episode.
- The Rock addresses controversy surrounding his fundraising efforts in Hawaii, acknowledging public anger and clarifying the situation.
- Fans disappointed to learn of The Rock's heel turn in this way, but understand his need to prioritize his reputation and philanthropic work.
It took The Rock admonishing a reporter for a false story on social media, but the WWE performer, TKO Board member, and Hollywood icon has confirmed he has turned heel in WWE. The hint was dropped during Thursday's WWE Kickoff to WrestleMania 40 press conference in Las Vegas, teased again on Friday's SmackDown, but now confirmed by the entertainer himself. The Rock is a villain, and his social media post proves it.
Dwayne Johnson, The Rock, does a lot of humanitarian work. Unfortunately, his recent work with Oprah Winfrey to benefit the tragic events in Hawaii has been scrutinized. When Johnson and Oprah Winfrey launched a fund to aid those affected by Maui's deadly fires, they faced unexpected backlash. Critics argued that asking the public for contributions was evading their social responsibilities. Six weeks later, Johnson addressed the controversy on Instagram, acknowledging the public's anger and expressing understanding. There was also talk about where the funds were going, and how much was going to relief efforts.
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The Rock seems to have turned heel as part of WWE's plan to fix the WrestleMania 40 corner they painted themselves into.Unfortunately, Internet personality Nick Sortor took things a bit too far when he claimed the boos The Rock was receiving from fans at the WrestleMania presser were because of the Hawaii funds efforts, which absolutely wasn't true. Sortor wrote, "It looks like the audience is fully AMERICA FIRST and is demanding The Rock and Oprah follow through with their commitment to take care of the people of Lahaina." The Rock called Sortor out, saying:
I typically refrain from responding to toxic, false clickbait garbage like this because I hate dignifying bullshit with a response, but when you use Hawaii’s tragic events to draw attention to yourself I won’t stay quiet.
Johnson added, "This moment you’re referring to is from our @WWE press conference this past Thursday where I turned “heel” - wrestling parlance for bad guy. I’m playing it up with our crowd as they boo. It’s what we do in our WWE universe, and we all love every second of it."
The Rock went on to invite Sortor to Hawaii to see what they were doing there as part of the relief efforts. He claimed his love for the people of Hawaii and said, "Our People’s Fund of Maui has already DELIVERED over $50 MILLION DOLLARS to over 8,000 survivors who were affected by the fires."
Unfortunate Way To Unveil More Rock Storylines
For fans of WWE and The Rock, this is an unfortunate way to find out that The Rock actually has turned heel. It was all but confirmed, but there was still more storytelling to come. Understandably, Johnson had to make setting the record straight a priority. His reputation as a iconic figure trying to good for people by raising money has to take priority over a character he's playing on television.
