Interview: 'The Rock' adds comedy to his body of work

If he hadn't been born with the body of an athlete, there's a good chance that Dwayne Johnson would have become a stand-up comic. Instead, he went into the family business, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather to become a professional wrestler, where he found fame as the Rock.

Now 35, retired from the ring and turning his focus to acting, he's finally getting a chance to flex his comic muscles. After a series of stereotypical macho roles in "The Mummy,"The Scorpion King" and "Doom," he's starring in the family comedy "The Game Plan."I like to make people laugh," he said during a visit to the Twin Cities to promote Friday's opening of the movie. "I still write monologues."

Although he was a talented athlete (he played football on a University of Miami team that won the national championship), he believes his 'rasslin fame can be attributed as much to his flamboyant public presence as to his signature move, the Rock Bottom.

"That's a crazy world," he said of pro wrestling. "I relied a lot on my funny monologues. And that's what got me interested in acting; I realized that people were responding" to his performances.

His original goal was to work in a TV sitcom, but he had an image problem. "People didn't see me as that," he said.

They saw him as big (6 feet 4 and 250 pounds, although he was billed as 6-5, 275 in his wrestling days), strong and tough -- so that's what he played. But when he got chances to show off his funny side, albeit briefly, in "Be Cool" and "The Rundown," he jumped at them. And when the offer for "The Game Plan" came along, he did the same.

"I'm not a dark guy," he insisted, even though casting directors tend to see him that way. "I think that people were surprised that I was funny in 'The Rundown.' "

Director Andy Fickman ("She's the Man") wasn't deterred by Johnson's lack of comedy credits.

"What I look for in an actor is the spark that indicates that they are willing to go one step further," he said. "Dwayne has that spark. I think that there are a lot of colors of the rainbow of his acting that he hasn't shown us yet."

Both men point to Johnson's athletic background as a factor in his acting. He takes coaching (i.e., directing) well, Fickman said. He'll keep practicing a scene until everyone nails it, not just him. And he's always willing to dig down in search of a little extra.

"He's not one of those actors who'll tell you, 'I can't do it anymore because I've given you all I've got,' " he said. "He'll work with you."

Johnson agreed that his approach is sports-based.

"It's the exact same philosophy," he said. "It's all about focus and hard work. I'm a big believer in hard work. Hard work pays off."

The work isn't done, he said. Far from it.

"I don't just want to be an actor, I want to become a good actor," he said. "And to do that, I need to really, truly dedicate myself to acting. I need to seek out good material and good directors."

Dedicating himself fully to "The Game Plan" sometimes meant checking his dignity at the stage door. Reaching out to pint-sized viewers means that there are some messy scenes -- he gets plastered with food shot out of a blender, for instance -- with the messes and the laughs coming at his expense. But he didn't mind.

"It's a broad comedy," he said. "If you really want to be funny, you can't always be cool."

Jeff Strickler • 612-673-7392

Jeff Strickler • jstrickler@startribune.com