Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has weighed the idea of running for president in the past. In a new interview, the Hollywood actor has revealed whether or not he will actually run in 2024.
Actor and international star Dwayne @TheRock Johnson has been seriously talked about as a potential candidate for president – and it was talk he didn’t outright dismiss – until now. Johnson tells @thattracysmith he is ruling out a run for president & more this "Sunday Morning." pic.twitter.com/38DltxUFej
— CBS Sunday Morning 🌞 (@CBSSunday) October 7, 2022
Running For President ‘Off The Table’ For Johnson
Fans of Johnson may be saddened to learn that he will not be running for president after all.
“It’s off the table. Yes, it is off the table,” Johnson told CBS Sunday Morning of a potential presidential run.
“I will say this, ’cause it requires a B side to this,” he continued. “I love our country and everyone in it. I also love being a daddy. And that’s the most important thing to me, is being a daddy, number one, especially during this time, this critical time in my daughters’ lives. ‘Cause I know what it was like to be on the road and be so busy that I was absent for a lot of years when my first daughter [was] growing up. … At this critical time in their life — that’s what the presidency would do. So, my number one priority is my daughters.”
Johnson is father to a 21-year-old daughter, Simone Garcia Johnson, with ex-wife Dany Garcia, and he also shares 6-year-old Jasmine and 4-year-old Tiana with wife Lauren Hashian. When it comes down to it, Johnson doesn’t have enough interest in politics to let it take him away from his family.
“Sure, CEO sounds great!” Johnson said. “But the number one thing I want to be is daddy. That’s it.”
Johnson’s full interview will air on CBS on Sunday morning at 9am.
Happy Birthday to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson!
The most electrifying man to ever grace sports entertainment. pic.twitter.com/ycYHPkdYnm— Bush League Mud Show Wrestling Podcast (@BushLeagueMSPod) May 2, 2022
Johnson’s Past Comments On Running For President
The Hill reported that Johnson said in 2017 that running for president was a “real possibility” for him, and he still was open to it as recently as last year.
“I don’t think our Founding Fathers ever envisioned a six-four, bald, tattooed, half-Black, half-Samoan, tequila drinking, pickup truck driving, fanny pack wearing guy joining their club — but if it ever happens it’d be my honor to serve you, the people,” Johnson told Vanity Fair in 2021.
Johnson went on to say that he’s done research into a potential political run, claiming that “indicators are all very positive — in, for example, 2024, and in, for example, 2028.”
In The Scorpion King (2002), Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s titular character does not wear a crown. This is based on the fact that scorpions exist under a constitutional, not an absolute, monarchy. pic.twitter.com/VsrFOBj6kH
— Movie Leaks (@movieleaksnow) October 7, 2022
‘I Care Deeply About Our Country’
“You know, at the end of the day, I don’t know the first thing about politics. I don’t know the first thing about policy,” he said. “I care deeply about our country. I care about every f—ing American who bleeds red, and that’s all of them. And — there’s no delusion here — I may have some decent leadership qualities, but that doesn’t necessarily make me a great presidential candidate. That’s where I am today.”
Johnson is registered as an Independent and, while he spoke at the Republican National Convention back in 2000, he supported Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. Given how long he’s been in the liberal world of Hollywood at this point, it’s likely that he would be left-leaning if he ever ran for office. Perhaps we are all better off with him deciding not to run for president after all.