‘The Rock’ is in an easy place
A funny thing happened on the way to “supporting roles only” in Dwayne Johnson’s movie career: Kids.
The struggling action star did “The Game Plan,” a comedy for Disney, and all of a sudden he’s big box office and every child’s best bud.
He did “Cory in the House” on the Disney Channel. He’s starring in Disney’s new “Race to Witch Mountain,” and has an animated film (“Planet 51”) and another kid-friendly comedy (“Tooth Fairy”) due out this year.
And he’s hosting Nickelodeon’s “Kid’s Choice Awards” at the end of the month.
“He doesn’t take himself seriously,” says AnnaSophia Robb, one of his teen “Witch Mountain” co-stars.
“He’s a dynamic personality with this self-deprecating sense of humor,” adds adult co-star Carla Gugino. “Kids respond to that.”
The former wrestler is as canny as anybody in the biz about finding a niche. He’s no longer going by “The Rock.” And he didn’t really discover his big-screen appeal to kids until he tested those waters.
“I started to examine family movies, what makes them work, what makes them not work,” he says.
“I realized that when a family movie is done right, everybody in the family has some character they can relate to on screen. If they’re done right, the lead character in the movie becomes a better person by the end of the movie and makes everybody around them better, too.
“That’s what family is all about – struggle, perseverance, staying together. And that’s what a family movie has to have going for it, too.”
The divorced father of a 7-year-old knows what kids like, which may be why he’s fast becoming Disney’s go-to guy for kid-friendly action.
“Disney gets that,” he says. “It’s a cool thing when you can make movies that everyone can go see.
“I love the partnership I have with Disney. I recognize the power that the brand has, its impact on families all over the world. We had great success with ‘The Game Plan,’ and when they came to me with this, I was ready.”
“This” is a reboot of one of Disney’s popular franchises from the ’70s, the “Witch Mountain” movies about kids with mysterious powers. “Race to Witch Mountain” revives the series, with Johnson playing an ex-mob “wheel man” now driving a taxi, a regular Joe named Jack Bruno who finds himself transporting two alien teens trying to find their way back home.
It lets Johnson show off his timing, his way with a funny line, which was evident even back in his days in the ring.
“As far back as when I was 8, I used to memorize monologues from ‘Rocky II,’ ‘Indiana Jones’ movies,” he says. “And I’d memorize these Richard Pryor monologues.
“I know I was too young to listen to them, no business at all listening to what he was doing. I’d sneak the tapes off and commit these long, vulgarity-laced monologues to memory. You memorize Richard and you learn timing.”
The birthday bunch
Comedian Jerry Lewis is 83. Director Bernardo Bertolucci is 68. Game show host Chuck Woolery is 68. Actor Victor Garber is 60. Actor Erik Estrada is 60. Actress Isabelle Huppert is 54. Rapper Flavor Flav is 50. Actress Lauren Graham is 42. Actor Judah Friedlander (“30 Rock”) is 40.