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Home / Entertainment

'A real possibility': Dwayne Johnson considers running for President

NZ Herald
11 May, 2017 09:00 AM3 mins to read

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Could Dwayne Johnson's nickname soon change from 'The Rock' to 'The President'? Photo / Getty

Could Dwayne Johnson's nickname soon change from 'The Rock' to 'The President'? Photo / Getty

He's a champion in the ring and a star on the movie set, but Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson for President?

According to the Moana star, "it is a real possibility".

Johnson, who has previously been suggested as a possible future presidential candidate, believes he could make a bid for the White House.

"A year ago, it started coming up more and more," the actor who grew up in New Zealand told GQ,

"There was a real sense of earnestness, which made me go home and think 'Let me really rethink my answer and make sure I am giving an answer that is truthful and also respectful.'

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"Personally, I feel that if I were president, poise would be important. Leadership would be important. Taking responsibility for everybody ... I wouldn't shut [anyone who disagreed] out. I would actually include them.

"The first thing we'd do is we'd come and sit down, and we'd talk about it. It's hard to categorise right now how I think he's doing, other than to tell you how I would operate," he said.

Johnson revealed that while he has "a tremendous amount of respect for the [political] process", he turned down offers to campaign for Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump in 2016.

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The movie star said he thought carefully because he feels he is "in a position now where my word carries a lot of weight."

The former wrestler has a number of backers. Photo / Getty
The former wrestler has a number of backers. Photo / Getty

The former wrestler also delved into his opinion on Donald Trump's so-called Muslim travel ban, making his thoughts loud and clear.

"I completely disagree with it," he told GQ. "I believe in our national security to the core, but I don't believe in a 'ban' that bans immigrants. I believe in inclusion. Our country was built on that, and it continues to be made strong by that. And the decision felt like a snap judgment.

"I feel like the majority of if not all, Americans feel that protection is of huge importance. But the ideology and the execution [of national-security initiatives] is where we really have to be careful of not making those snap decisions because there's a tail effect...

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"Within 24 hours, we saw a 'tail effect.' It grew to heartache, it grew to a great deal of pain, it grew to a great deal of confusion, and it had a lot of people scrambling."

The Rock, 45, is the highest paid actor in Hollywood and worth a staggering $93m-a-year after releasing blockbusters such as The Fate of the Furious.

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