It was inevitable that Dwayne Johnson was going to be faced with a deluge of questions regarding the failure of Black Adam whenever he stepped foot on a red carpet again, but the actor and producer has been doing his best to put on a brave face.
Whether he’s comparing Henry Cavill’s failed comeback to a football analogy or reiterating that fans enjoyed the film (regardless of how few seemed to actually pay for a ticket to catch it on the big screen), The Rock is being as positive he can despite the disastrous legacy of the DCU blockbuster.
15 years of development hell, $200 million in production costs, promises of an entire corner of the franchise being carved out and designed to build towards a showdown between the Man in Black and the Man of Steel all proved to be for nothing, but at least Johnson isn’t letting it affect his admiration of fellow DC alumni.
Sharing a snap from the Academy Awards, the 50 year-old outlined his appreciation for Barry Keoghan, who has a backstory that led him from a troubled childhood to an Oscar nomination that’s worthy of its own biopic.
The big difference between the two is that Keoghan is still gainfully employed by the comic book company, with his cameo as the Joker in Matt Reeves’ The Batman expected to lead to much bigger and more impactful things in the sequels, spinoffs, and TV shows coming down the pipeline. At the moment, they’re tied for DC appearances at one apiece, but we all know which one of them is going to be sticking around for the foreseeable future.