At the youthful age of 43, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has lived life! The former professional wrestler is now one of the busiest and highest grossing actors in Hollywood with nine films in various stages of production between 2015 and 2019!
In a new episode of Oprah’s Master Class Dwayne gives viewers a very in depth look into his upbringing and the various experiences that shaped his life.
One situation in particular was at age 15, he saved his mother, Ata Maivia Johnson from committing suicide.
His parents were in an argument while driving when his father pulled the car over on the side of the road. Ata got out and began walking into oncoming traffic until Dwayne pulled her out of harms way.
“In that moment, one of the greatest lessons I’ve ever learned was how precious life is and in an instant, it can all go away” he shared.
Another life changing situation included being passed over by the NFL after playing football all throughout high school and college at the University of Miami.
At age 23, Dwayne fell into a deep depression and was uncertain as to what he was supposed to do next with his life.
“I found that with depression one of the most important things you could realize is that you’re not alone. You’re not the first to go through it, I wish I had someone at that time who could just pull me aside and [say], ‘Hey, it’s going to be okay” he shared.
Two months later Dwayne says he got a call from the head coach of the pro team that cut him and he was asked to return to the field.
“I hung up the phone, and my dad said, ‘You’re going to do it, right?’ I said, ‘No, I don’t think so. I think I’m done with that. … My gut tells me I’m done.’”
Dwayne’s father Rocky Johnson and grandfather Peter Maivia were professional wrestler’s with the WWE. Dwayne decided he wanted to follow in their footsteps to his fathers disapproval.
He recalls his father saying, ‘You’re throwing it all away. It is the worst mistake you will ever make. I said to him ‘Maybe I’ll be no good, but I feel like, in my heart, I have to do this.’”
Dwayne’s father eventually became his trainer and he shares that his decade long career as a wrestler was, “one of the greatest chapters in my life.”
Check out some exclusive clips from the show and watch the episode in it’s entirety, Sunday, November 15th on OWN.
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Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Shares His Battle With Depression + Saving His Mother’s Life On ‘Oprah’s Master Class’ was originally published on hellobeautiful.com
