Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Facing Backlash

Source: Tibrina Hobson / Getty

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was excited to announce that he’s playing the legendary folklore, John Henry for the Netflix movie. CBS News states that Henry is known as an African-American folk hero. He was a steel driver that worked very hard until his heart stopped from stress.

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https://twitter.com/TheRock/status/1049783776094670848

Johnson went on social media to post a trailer of the film and said, “WHEN THE MAN COMES AROUND. Inspired to bring to life one of my childhood heroes, John Henry, in JOHN HENRY & THE STATESMEN. In this movie, I’ll lead an ensemble of the most popular folklore figures and legends from different cultures around the world. @NETFLIX is the perfect partner & platform to bring these global folklore icons to life. “

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The director, Jake Kasden, who worked with Johnson on “Jumanji,” is excited to work with him again. Twitter users sounded off and aren’t happy about Johnson playing this role because Henry is a dark-skinned black man.

https://twitter.com/ThatsSoAshtynn/status/1049780450368077826

https://twitter.com/BlerdMommy/status/1049783076220530694

Johnson is mixed, but in the past has played White, Black as well as Pacific Islander characters. Who would you rather see in this role?

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