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EX-PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING STAR MAKES BID FOR DRAMATIC CREDIBILITY IN `GRIDIRON GANG’
By Mark de la Viña
Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson speaks Thursday at a screening of “Gridiron Gang” at the Camera 12 cinema in San Jose.
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To say that a former pro wrestler aspires to become a serious actor is akin to suggesting that a meter maid wants to crack a murder case.
Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson put such notions in a hammerlock by signing up for “Gridiron Gang,” the heartstring-plucking drama about a group of teenage felons molded into a successful football team. The movie, based on the 1993 Emmy award-winning documentary of the same name, opens Friday.
Johnson, 34, made an amazingly smooth transition to film star with “The Scorpion King,” the 2002 spinoff of “The Mummy Returns.” But aside from his turn as a gay aspiring singer in “Be Cool” (2005) and an amnesiac in “Southland Tales” (2006), Johnson’s roles often have been limited to thick-necked leads in action vehicles. His hope is that “Gridiron Gang” helps establish a new precedent for ex-grapplers in film.
“My goal is to become a versatile actor able to do a wide array of different roles,” Johnson said at a San Francisco hotel where he was promoting “Gridiron Gang.” “That was my goal five years ago, but I wasn’t getting the material that was going to allow me to do it. It was all action, and frankly, a lot of it was bad.”
When Johnson read the script to “Gridiron Gang,” he was convinced that it was the kind of drama that could advance his standing as a serious performer. In its 10-plus-year production life, the movie had been attached to Nicolas Cage, Bruce Willis and Sylvester Stallone, who all ultimately passed. “Gridiron Gang” also hit Johnson personally more than he ever could have anticipated.
The Hayward-born actor was moved to tears in watching the “Gridiron Gang” documentary, which took him back to his own checkered youth in Hawaii. Police had collared Johnson eight times by the time he was 17 for “fighting, theft and more fighting,” he said.
His arresting officer encouraged Johnson to play high school football. Though he continued to get into trouble, joining the team — as well as his mother’s timely, tearful intervention — ultimately prompted him to straighten up.
“I understand where these kids are coming from,” he said. “And the value of sports. I was watching the documentary, and I was writing notes like `I did it. That’s me!’ ”
“Gridiron Gang” is also perfectly suited to Johnson’s strengths. Charismatic, handsome and blessed with an undeniable presence, Johnson plays tough-love football coach Sean Porter, who instills a sense of self-worth in the incarcerated young men.
About 130 teenagers at Camp Kilpatrick, the youth camp near Santa Monica where the film was filmed and is set, witnessed nearly every day of filming.
“It was just motivating,” he said. “What’s great is to tell these kids, `Listen, here’s a movie we’re making about your life.’ This can happen.”
“Gridiron Gang” also gave Johnson, a former defensive star for the University of Miami in the early ’90s, the chance to wear a football uniform for the first time since 1996. The shoulder pads, designed for teenagers, were far too small for Johnson, who is 6 feet 4.
“But it was like being a big kid again,” he said. “It reminds me how cool my job is.”
As for his prior occupation, Johnson said he doesn’t foresee returning to the wrestling ring.
“I was able to accomplish what I did in wrestling, quietly got out three years ago and am loving what I do now,” he said. “It’s hard to be an actor. It’s hard to be a good actor. But if you want to become a versatile actor, it takes a 100 percent commitment.”
`Gridiron Gang’
Rated: PG-13, for some startling scenes of violence, mature thematic material and language
Cast: Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson, Xzibit, Kevin Dunn, Leon Rippy
Director: Phil Joanou
Running time: 2 hours
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