Will Dwayne Johnson Appear on WWE SmackDown’s Premiere on FOX?

WWE is bringing out a laundry list of legends for Friday Night SmackDown’s Oct. 4 premiere on the FOX network, including “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Sting, Goldberg, Trish Stratus, Lita, Mick Foley Booker T and Kurt Angle. But there’s one former WWE star, arguably the biggest walking the globe today, who has been absent from any and all advertising for the show — Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. It seems only fair that the Hobbs & Shaw star would appear on the show at some point given it was one of his catchphrases that gave SmackDown its name, but he has a notoriously busy schedule with multiple films currently in production.

However the outlet Ad Age, which broke the news on Progressive signing on as SmackDown’s presenting sponser on FOX earlier this week, fanned the flames of speculation at the end of the article.

“While many other opening night appearances are being kept under wraps, keep an eye peeled for the trash-talking Goliath who is now the WWE’s most storied alum, as Dwayne ”The Rock’ Johnson may very well look to pop in on the 20th anniversary of “SmackDown” and promote his upcoming Disney flick, ‘Jungle Cruise,’” the article read.

Back in early August Johnson admitted while on Live With Kelly and Ryan that he had “quietly” retired from competing inside of a WWE ring. His last match (no, the eight-second win over Erick Rowan at WrestleMania 32 doesn’t count) came at WrestleMania 29 against John Cena resulted in him tearing two tendons in his pelvis, which wound up causing delays while he was filming Hercules. As a result, film studios have been incredible hesitant on the A-lister appearing in a wrestling ring

“I miss wrestling, I love wrestling. Yes, I do,” he said. “I quietly retired from wrestling because I was lucky enough to have just a really wonderful career and accomplish what I wanted to accomplish, but there’s nothing like a live crowd, a live audience, a live microphone as you both know. Plus, I grew up in wrestling. For a lot of you guys that don’t know, my grandfather wrestled, my dad as well, my whole family. And I actually had my very first match ever in the WWE, was in Madison Square Garden and it was a big pay-per-view, and it was funny because I credit my time and my journey in pro wrestling to getting me to where I am at today.”