As easily one of the most recognizable faces in entertainment, Dwayne Johnson has cultivated a highly successful career that has pivoted through many platforms throughout the years. Before producing and acting in some of the highest grossing films of all time, he was known simply as “The Rock,” professional WWF superstar wrestler. Before that, he was known as a football player at the University of Miami; before that…well, that’s what’s still unclear. Not much is known about Johnson’s childhood, which is what he wants to explore in his new sitcom, “Young Rock.”
The NBC sitcom from co-creators Jeff Chiang and “Fresh off the Boat” creator Nahnatchka Khan sees Johnson running for president in the year 2032 as he recounts a recollection of memories from three stages of his childhood and young adulthood. Playing him at these stages is a trio of talented leads: Adrian Groulx as a 10-year-old Johnson, Bradley Constant as a 15-year-old Johnson, and Uli Latukefu who plays Johnson from ages 18–20.
“I play little Dewey. Dewey is funny and he loves his family a lot and they are really close,” Groulx tells Backstage. The young actor is a huge fan of the Rock and cites the “Jumanji” films being among his favorites. He gravitated towards the love that the 10-year-old Dewey had for his family. “I saw that Dwayne, he adores his dad and he’s funny, and I try to relate to those things because my father is the best person in the world to me. He is my superhero.”
For Constant, he grounded himself to another aspect of Johnson’s youthful years. “The most fun part about playing him was being able to go back to my 15 year old self,” says Constant. “Part of the reason I feel like I gravitated to the role so much was because a lot of the little nuances of the character is kind of similar to the ways that I used to act when I was a teenager. And so it’s just fun recalling what’s important to a 15-year-old boy.”
Constant also found himself connected to the optimism Johnson had, “his constant hopefulness, always trying to make the best out of any situation.” The series details the struggles and hardships the real-life Johnson had to grapple with through his teen years. “He had family struggles, [and] you’ll see on the show that didn’t phase him,” Constant adds. “He came to the new school and is making the best out of every situation, and I feel like that was a big thing for me when I was in high school.”
Similarly, Latukefu, who’s previously best-known for Netflix’s “Marco Polo” and “Alien: Covenant,” related to the idea of working through those hardships. He says at that point in his life, he found himself in a comparable situation. “I myself grew up from really humble beginnings,” Latukefu says. “Moving from house to house. My mom was a single mother; my father passed away when I was quite young. So really family was an important thing, still is for me.”
Dwayne Johnson Bring His Life Story to NBC With ‘Young Rock’ And that’s one of the cornerstones of the series: valuing family, never forgetting where you’ve come from, and appreciating what you have in the moment. It’s something that the cast really took to heart and something that Johnson regularly conveyed to them.
“[Dwayne and I] were able to chat briefly over Zoom a couple of times, and he’s a really nice, amazing guy,” Groulx recalls. “He told me this show to him is super, super important and it means so much to him and the fact that it’s not just any show, it’s his show about his life…. I tried my best to make Dwayne proud.”
Making Johnson proud was a consistent goal across the three actors, and the trio found comfort in the fact that Johnson was easily available to help out in developing their characters. Any questions or insight they needed to prepare for a scene was just a call or text away. “Before I even got started filming I got to have a really good chat with [Johnson] for about a full hour,” Constant recalls. “He was super open and genuine, he let me ask the questions, and that made me feel super comfortable.”
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While Johnson offered the actors all the insight and advice he could, the biggest advice he had for them was also the most practical: Just have fun. “He encouraged me to just enjoy the role,” says Latukefu. “It's a comedy, so he was incredibly encouraging and said, ‘Make the most of it and just enjoy the ride.’ ” As such, one exciting and fun moment for Latukefu was getting to “fanboy” out a bit and recreate the Rock’s very popular and meme-able fanny pack and turtle neck photo.
“Particularly in my stage of playing Dwayne, you get to start to see some of the mannerisms that we know from him as the Rock,” Latukefu adds. “The fanny pack is back! Bringing some context to the photo is really fun and I think people are going to love it.”
4 Things Dwayne Johnson Does on Social Media (That You Should, Too) Aside from conversations with Johnson, recreating iconic imagery, there was a deal of research required of each actor, as well. And in putting it all together, they each learned new things as performers. For Groulx, he learned how to take new direction on the spot; for Latukefu, he learned how to better trust the writers and lean into a script’s comedic beats; for Constant, this was his first television series credit, so he dove in and made efforts to learn just about everything he could.
“This is my first show and I showed up, obviously super nervous, but everybody took me in, everyone was so kind, everyone believes in each other,” he says. “They believed in me. My stand-ins probably hated me because I would tap them out! I wanted to just stand and watch what was going on so I could learn.”
When asked what advice they have for aspiring actors waiting to make their mark in the world, Groulx, the youngest of the three, has already learned the value of hard work. “My advice would be that it is going to take a lot of time and it’s not going to be handed to you,” he says. “You’re going to really have to work for it.”
“I think I would say to stay open, keep learning and just keep going,” Latukefu advises. “Keep trying new things, and be fearless [in] your approach to things. Just remain true to what you have and what’s unique to you.”
“I would say just make sure you know what you want out of your career,” Constant concludes. “Dwayne would always think positive, always have the best outlook. And he had big dreams for himself, huge dreams. Make sure you love what you’re doing and you’re patient. There’s no time on when something can happen.”
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