Back in August, Dwayne Johnson — the man with a social media presence to rival any studio — wrote up a post on Facebook that criticized some of his “male co-stars.â€:
“Some conduct themselves as stand up men and true professionals, while others don’t. The ones that don’t are too chicken s**t to do anything about it anyway. Candy asses. When you watch this movie next April and it seems like I’m not acting in some of these scenes and my blood is legit boiling — you’re right.â€
It wasn’t long before the thinly-veiled diss was revealed to be none other than Vin Diesel. Given that both Johnson and Diesel are men of big egos,it wasn’t the biggest surprise that there was such a big clash. What was a surprise is that Johnson went and made the whole thing public.
It’s now been a couple months, and both Johnson and Diesel have allowed themselves to cool off a bit. With that in mind, is that post something Johnson regrets? Speaking with LA Times, Johnson doubled down on his decision to make that post, and went on to state how in making that post, interest in the film has gone up:
“I was very clear with what I said. I’ve been in the game a long time. Would Universal [Pictures] have preferred that didn’t happen? Sure, we talked about it. The irony is after that and as they do their tracking and all their analysis, the interest shot through the roof to a whole other level.â€
Well, that’s partially true. Sure, Fast 8 is a sequel to one of the biggest blockbusters of last year, but studios are always in a neverending quest to increase interest in any property. There’s the old saying that “no publicity is bad publicity,†and I have to wonder if they’re taking this whole thing to heart.
I’ve mentioned this before here at LRM Online in the past, but this increasingly seems like a publicity stunt to promote the film, and I look forward to the big reveal that Diesel will be taking on Johnson in the ring prior to the film’s release. As Johnson himself said, this conflict has made interesting shoot through the roof, and I can think of no better way for this whole ordeal to come together.
What do you think of all this? Do you expect this whole thing to end in the ring, or do you believe it to be a genuine feud based on Johnson’s comments to LA Times? Let us know your thoughts down below!
Fast & Furious 8 hits theaters on April 14, 2017.
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SOURCES: Dwayne Johnson, LA Times