What’s the Deal with Disney and The Rock?
In 2022, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson earned headlines for his less-than-subtle attempt to take over the DCU.
That’s the DC Comics Cinematic Universe, a knock-off of the vastly more successful Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Still, I admired The Rock’s ambition, as the person producing DCU films can become a billionaire if things break right.
Once that attempt failed, the actor evaluated the landscape and found a new deal, one with equally lucrative potential.
Photo: George Pimentel/Getty Images
The Rock’s Seven Bucks production company signed a first-look deal with The Walt Disney Company.
You’re probably wondering what’s the deal with Disney and The Rock. Please allow me to explain.
The Rock’s Early Disney History
Photo: Zimbio
We should begin with the acknowledgment that Johnson and Disney go way back.
After a successful career as a wrestler, The Rock tried to leverage his reputation as an entertainer into a film career.
Image Credit: Dwayne Johnson / Twitter
The early results were relatively positive, with the actor starring in The Scorpion King after appearing in The Mummy Returns.
Alas, his attempts to become an action star met with early struggles, with Walking Tall and The Rundown disappointing at the box office.
Image: Universal Pictures
Despite these struggles, one idiot on a movie site (me) foolishly proclaimed that Johnson had a chance to become the next Tom Cruise.
My counterparts on the website teased me about this for several years, even as they acknowledged that The Rundown is a terrific film.
Photo: Also Disney
Interestingly, The Rock’s film career largely stalled before he took on a low-budget Disney comedy, The Gameplan.
In that film, Johnson portrayed a star athlete and football player who discovered he was a single father.
Notably, the “actor” didn’t do much acting here, as he had been a star athlete and a defensive linemen for the Miami Hurricanes.
This happened during their glory days, with The Rock joking that he knew he wouldn’t make it in the pros once Warren Sapp took his job.
The Gameplan earned a factor of seven more than its budget, making it a huge hit. So, Disney remembered him fondly.
The company cast The Rock in the highly anticipated reboot, Race to Witch Mountain.
While that role was a box office draw, it made him a viable candidate for future work as an action film star.
Sure enough, Johnson became the first and only professional wrestler to become a Hollywood megastar…and don’t try to bring up Hulk Hogan or John Cena to me. We both know it’s a lie.
The Rock’s Recent Disney History
Image: Walt Disney Studios.
For multiple consecutive years, Johnson was the highest-paid actor in Hollywood.
Studios spent big money on him due to his guaranteed box office.
Photo: Disney
In fact, Disney kept hiring The Rock as well. Most notably, the actor voiced the character of Maui in Moana.
Somehow, that single voicework job has paid dramatic dividends, with Moana becoming one of the most-watched films of the streaming era.
Image: Disney
Johnson will return to the role of Maui in Moana 2 this November, and the film is expected to be among the biggest of the year.
Later, the actor will star in the live-action remake of Moana, a title we may not need, but people will want to watch it.
Photo: The Direct
Disney also hired The Rock to star in a cinematic adaptation of Jungle Cruise.
Alas, the pandemic wiped out the box office potential of this title, but critics raved about the chemistry between Johnson and actress Emily Blunt.
Photo: Disney
Currently, the film holds a Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes as well as an Audience Score of 92 percent.
As such, rumors persist that Disney will eventually make a sequel.
Photo: Disney
So, the actor currently has three different potential Disney projects on the docket.
What’s a First-Look Deal?
Photo: Dwayne Johnson on Instagram
Naturally, you may wonder about the deal Disney signed with The Rock’s production company.
The first thing to keep in mind is that a first-look deal has a simple meaning in Hollywood.
When a production company has an idea for a project, they shop it around town.
For established performers like Johnson, someone usually greenlights the project, agreeing to make it happen.
Under this new deal, Disney gets the first option on any production Seven Bucks pitches.
So, everything Seven Bucks wants to do will go through Disney first throughout the duration of the contract.
Photo: Disney
Technically, The Rock doesn’t have to star in any of these projects.
Generally, when he has worked as a producer on a film like Jungle Cruise, he has been one of the lead actors, though.
Of course, Johnson is 52 years old now and a former football player AND professional wrestler.
As such, his body has a tremendous amount of wear and tear. So, Johnson may be partially contemplating his future.
Image: Collider/Disney
Producers can earn an inordinate amount of money. For instance, Jon Landau has an estimated net worth of $150 million.
During his entire career, Landau has only produced seven films, but three of them are Titanic, Avatar, and Avatar: The Way of Water.
Source: 20th Century Studios
A successful project can earn a producer as much as an actor, even if the latter earns a cut of the film’s revenue.
With this first-look deal, The Rock agrees to work with Disney as much as possible, which is a smart business move for him.
Image Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty
After all, Disney has earned the most global box office for nine of the past ten years and only missed by a fractional amount in 2023.
Disney is safe, and Johnson’s films make money, making this a smart business agreement.
What’s the Deal with Disney and The Rock?
Here’s the thing, though. Disney is a multimedia conglomerate with its fingers in innumerable pies.
Similarly, Seven Bucks has already produced 16 movies, with three more on the way.
Image: Disney
More impressively, the 12-year-old company has also produced 14 television shows, including Young Rock and Behind the Attraction.
So, when you think about this deal, you should consider the possibilities for content like Behind the Attraction.
Photo: Disney+
Disney+ and Hulu program countless hours of content, and Seven Bucks has already done a little bit of everything, including reality shows.
The fit makes sense, but it also doesn’t stop there. Let’s say that Disney wants to add more Moana at the parks.
Photo: Disney
Now, they have The Rock under contract with Seven Bucks, which pressures him to agree to allow his image, likeness, and voice.
Similarly, let’s say that the Fortnite Disney universe happens. The Rock should easily agree to that as well.
Photo: Disney
So, on paper, this looks like a mutually beneficial agreement.
Seven Bucks can feel confident about publishing much of its content via the Disney marketing machine.
Photo: EPIC Games
Meanwhile, Disney knows that The Rock will prioritize its projects under the arrangements of the first-look deal.
Thus, Disney and The Rock are gonna work together a lot in the coming years, so much so that his arrival in the MCU feels inevitable.
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