Trust your instincts, that is the moral of the story when it comes to Dwayne Johnson's success in Hollywood. Early on, it was a struggle for the world’s most popular actor – his roles weren’t the greatest and the advice he was getting from his representatives at the time did not cater to who he really was.

Ultimately, DJ did things his own way and as he discussed with Cinema Blend, trusting his instincts and understanding the audience played a huge role in his Hollywood success;

“Yes, being in the ring is incredibly difficult, but the scope of the audience and the world that you now entertain and are responsible for in movies is global. This is why it requires a consistent and very constant daily hard work. And also, very very important is trust your gut and trust your instincts on what the audience will really enjoy and love. That’s the most important thing.”

As we’ll come to realize, being himself proved to be crucial for the former WWE star. We’ll take a look at the bad advice he was getting from his people back in the day and the negative effects that it had on his career. Let’s get started.

Making The Transition Wasn’t Easy

He left WWE in 2004, taking a massive risk, exiting the business at his prime. DJ discussed the risk involved leaving the world of pro wrestling;

“I retired from WWE in 2004, at the age of 32. At that time. Well, here’s the why, at that time, there were two reasons; my contract had expired, and the most important thing is that an agreement I have with anybody in the world, any company, any individual it’s always important to me. It means everything to me to shake that person’s hand and look him in the eye and deliver what I gave him my word on what I would deliver. I was at the top. I was the biggest number one draw. Retired from this world that I loved so much, and I know it’s a lot for some people to swallow.”

His ultimate goal in Hollywood was to create global success via films. That was a lot easier said than done, especially early on when the roles weren’t coming in hot and heavy like they’re today. Match that with some bad advice he was getting behind the scenes.

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They Told Him To Stop Training & Lose Weight

DJ was told that he had to be someone else completely once he made the transition to Hollywood. He was asked to lose weight and basically change his identity, catering to cardio more than muscle building. He lost a drastic amount of weight, and he was also told to separate himself from any association with WWE – the same company he adores and brought him all of his fame;

“When I first got to Hollywood, Hollywood, they didn’t know what the hell to do with me. I mean, I was half-black, half-Samoan, 6 foot 4, 275-pound pro wrestler. I was told at that time, 'Well, you gotta be a certain way. You gotta drop some weight. You gotta be somebody different. You gotta stop working out. You gotta stop calling yourself The Rock.”

Despite the advice, he continued to struggle in the industry, so much so that he would regret leaving WWE. It all changed for DJ once he decided to be his true self and leave the bad advice behind.

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He Cut Ties & Became The Biggest Star In Hollywood

DJ decided against conforming with what Hollywood wanted and man did it ever pay off in a big way;

“I made a choice, and the choice was, I wasn’t gonna conform to Hollywood. Hollywood was gonna conform to me. So Hollywood conformed to me.The most powerful thing that we can be is ourselves.”

No more losing weight or having to hide his tattoos during photoshoots, it all worked for DJ and then some. Be yourself and good things will come, that’s what this story is all about;

“I'm not being authentic," he explained. "I'm really not being me. I like going to the gym. I like driving my pickup truck and maybe I don't want to live in Hollywood. Maybe I want to live in Florida in the country. Maybe I don't want to wear a suit. I love wrestling and I love going back and being with the fans even if I don't wrestle anymore. I'm that guy."

DJ started to land the roles he always wanted and most importantly, he used his big movies to further his global reach – he’s now the most profitable celeb on IG recently surpassing Kylie Jenner, earning $1 million on an IG post.

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Sources – Cinema Blend, Essentially Sports & The List