Dwayne Johnson, better known as 'The Rock,' certainly doesn't share his on-screen character's hypnosis power. Rather, it seems Johnson has a different superpower - acting like a real knucklehead on a power trip. Johnson had his eye on Black Adam for years before the movie came to fruition, and he was certain that Black Adam would sweep the cinematic universe by storm. "I do believe that Black Adam is the most powerful and unstoppable force on this planet," said Johnson in an interview.

Apparently, Johnson's big claims fell short of accomplishing the one thing that mattered, box-office sales. Opening in October of last year, Black Adam brought in a meager 391 million. Considering its 195 million dollar budget, 40 million spent on re-shoots, and the expected returns for its category, 391 million is only slightly more than peanuts. Now, fresh on the heels of Black Adam's not-so-epic release, Variety reports that Johnson had a much bigger plan for DC than his one Black Adam movie, but Johnson may have dashed those plans ahead of time by letting his ego get the best of him.

Sources confirmed that Johnson, along with Black Adam producer Hiram Garcia who is also Johnson's ex-brother-in-law, and Beau Flynn, had an under-the-radar meeting with Warner Bros CEO David Zaslav to directly pitch their multi-year vision for Black Adam. The plan would interweave Henry Cavill as Superman, whose manager at the time was Johnson's ex-wife, culminating in Black Adam vs. Superman. Although the pitch took place during a time of internal shifts within DC and Warner Bros., it still ruffled feathers. One source said, “Dwayne went around everyone, which didn’t sit well.”

Johnson's plan for Black Adam saw a sliver of hope when Warner Bros. film co-heads Michael De Luca, and Pam Abdy approved a Cavill cameo in Black Adam, but the box office numbers quickly severed any multi-year hope. Cavill has since dissolved his manager relationship with Johnson's ex-wife, Danny Garcia. Although, sources say their parting was unrelated to the DC fiasco and that they maintain a relationship. No one can blame Johnson for pushing his own plans for Black Adam amidst the DC power vacuum, albeit he could have used a little more tact in his approach. However, along with the news of Johnson's failed DC plan came other reports of the actor's assumed big-shot status over Black Adam.

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Dwayne Johnson Insisted on a Tequila Bar Donning His Own Tequila Brand

Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam
Warner Bros. 

Before the failed release of Black Adam, reports say that Johnson's absurd demands increased and were a nuisance to the studio. Johnson pushed for a producing credit on DC League of Super-Pets, which opened in July 2022, but the actor did very little in the way of promoting the film.

With Johnson and Warner Bros.' relationship already on thin ice, Johnson made his most memorably hilarious demand and insisted on a tequila bar with 'The Rock's' tequila brand, Teremana, at the Black Adam premiere. Mind you, Black Adam is a PG-13 movie, adding to the absurdity of the demand. Warner Bros. ultimately denied this last request, saying it would be inappropriate considering the film's adolescent rating.

Perhaps Warner Bros. would have politely looked the other way at Johnson's big-headed conduct had Black Adam been the smashing success Johnson planned for, but as it stands, who's to say? One insider says, “His demands increased, and the returns just weren’t there.” But bad blood doesn't usually stay bad for long in Hollywood. If Will Smith can come back from "slapgate," then The Rock doesn't have too far to climb.