UPDATE: Dwayne Johnson posted a video on social media where he says the Daily Star interview never happened, and that he never made these comments.
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The Rock may have just cost himself a few Instagram followers, but WWE icon and Hollywood star probably doesn’t care.
In an interview with The Daily Star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson teed off on the generation of people who have become infamous for being overly sensitive and sparking an outrage culture, particularly on social media. To The Rock, a difference in opinion isn’t grounds to be offended, rather an inalienable right.
“I don’t have to agree with what somebody thinks, who they vote for, what they voted for, what they think, but I will back their right to say or believe it,” Rock said. “That’s democracy. So many good people fought for freedom and equality – but this generation are looking for a reason to be offended. If you are not agreeing with them then they are offended – and that is not what so many great men and women fought for.”
Rock mentioned that the wave of awareness and sensitivity is a positive development in society, but thinks too much of that can be troublesome.
“We thankfully now live in a world that has progressed over the last 30 or 40 years,” Rock said. “People can be who they want, be with who they want, and live how they want. That can only be a good thing – but generation snowflake or, whatever you want to call them, are actually putting us backwards.”
For the most part, The Rock seems to avoid polarizing subjects. But by simply uttering the word “snowflake” he’s likely triggered a chunk of social media and his timeline has probably already flooded with folks swearing off all of his movies. However, with 128 million followers on Instagram, maybe the Rock though it was time to shed a few of his sheep.
This is a topic that Rock will probably be asked to revisit in more interviews and it will be interesting to see if he doubles down on his sentiments—especially if those Presidential rumors ever prove to be true.
