The Rock Reveals Shocking Way He Recently Suffered A Concussion

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson recently suffered a concussion while filming.

A new movie starring the 53-year-old, The Smashing Machine, releases on October 3, and it has already received high praise at multiple screening events.

At the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, The Rock received a 15-minute standing ovation, which brought him to tears.

He might even be up for an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of former UFC fighter Mark Kerr.

The Rock Recalls Being Hit By A Reluctant Fighter On The Set

During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the former WWE Champion revealed an incident that left him concussed while shooting an action scene.

There’s a scene at the end, and this happened in real life. Mark Kerr is in Japan, fighting in front of 30,000 people against Fujita. Mark is on all fours, Fujita is wailing away on him, and he’s not moving. But he’s not knocked out—he’s just taking every hit. And I asked Benny, ‘Are we going to shoot the scene like that?’ And he said, ‘Yes.’ So I told the fighter I was working with, ‘Hey brother, I know it sounds crazy, but you’ve got to hit me. You have to hit me.’ And he was a Japanese fighter, very respectful.

He said, ‘No, no, I will not hit you.’ He refused. Finally, I said, ‘Please, we have one shot at this. You must hit me.’ Benny came over and said, ‘You must hit him. I know you respect DJ, but you respect the real fight with Mark Kerr in Japan. Keep our integrity and whale away.’ So in the movie, you’ll see him rocking me over and over. After that fight, you see me looking loopy—that’s because I had a concussion. But that’s the thing, if you’re going to make an MMA movie, you’ve got to go all the way. And that’s what we did. You’ve got to play the part. [H/T: Ringside News]

The Rock also received negative publicity for shedding a ton of weight, with some expressing concern for his health.