People generally tend to react with outpourings of wholesome joy and relief whenever Dwayne Johnson does a good deed, but launching a $10 million relief fund alongside Oprah Winfrey has had the exact opposite effect.
When the A-list duo decided to mount a massive fundraising campaign to aid those affected by the Maui wildfires, their hearts were clearly in the right place. However, the fact the pair of them are worth at least $1.5 billion collectively and are asking everyday folks to chip in hasn’t gone down to well.
Whether it’s the duo being called “tone deaf” or being criticized for not putting their hands deep enough into their own pockets – never mind the ongoing controversy over just how much land Oprah owns in Hawaii – the reaction hasn’t exactly been one of unanimous praise and positivity.
Either ignorant or oblivious to the backlash, The Rock has once again taken to Instagram to try and rally the troops to start the cash rolling in, but making a point of noting he chipped in $5 million has had much the same effect on the comments section as yesterday’s initial announcement did.
The very top comment on Johnson’s post reads “Just think you and Oprah could change that whole area with a few of your rich friends donating to the cause. Crazy how it always gets put on the middle class to bail everyone out,” which seems to be an overriding sentiment among many.
Scroll ever so slightly further down, and there’s another that states “Dwayne is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Asking for donations. We are broke. You play the superhero you so desperately want to. But do it in real life.” It might have been made with the best of intentions, but it’s already becoming clear that the Johnson/Winfrey relief fund is ruffling substantially more feathers than anyone could have imagined.
