Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson returned Friday night for the WWE Friday Night Smackdown at the Ball Arena in Denver, CO. As might be expected, the crowd went wild, resulting in a four-minute standing ovation for the actor, who is currently out of work in his day gig.
Pat McAfee helped goose the event appearance. “This is the people’s show. And you know what that means,” McAfee said as The Rock made his entrance .
The match featured the rock against Austin Theory.
The Rock hasn’t appeared on Smackdown since 2019, since he’s been busy making movies. But he hasn’t forgotten the wrestling script.
When Theory started to antagonize him, asking, “Do you know whose ring you’re in?” The Rock responded. “Shut your bitch-ass up. You clearly don’t know how all this works.”
He then doffed his jacket and roared, “Finally, The Rock has come back to Denver!”
Highlighting the match was The Rock’s use of his signature move, The People’s Elbow. See below for details.
Also on hand was The Rock’s former rival, John Cena, who faced off against Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa during the program. The two superstars shared a moment before the match, and Cena later posted to X about the night.
“The best nights are the ones when we remember we’re all fans,” Cena wrote. “Welcome home, The Rock.”
