Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson once had the chance to star in a Michael Bay Transformers movie, but another film got in the way. Although Johnson is an actor who started out as a wrestler, his history with film and television remains impressive. In the 2000s, Johnson got his start in action films like The Mummy Returns but also in comedies like The Game Plan and Tooth Fairy. After that, his reputation as a certifiable action star began to grow. Nowadays, Dwayne Johnson is a huge Disney star, but in 2014, one movie could have hurt or helped his growing career.
In 2014, the Transformers live-action movie franchise received a new installment: Transformers: Age of Extinction. The movie stood out from its predecessors because it no longer followed the human cast from the first three movies. Instead, a totally new set of characters led the movie, including Mark Wahlberg, Kelsey Grammer, Nicola Peltz, and Stanley Tucci. Transformers 4 was also an unlikely success. Despite garnering a disappointing 17% on Rotten Tomatoes, the film earned more than $1 billion at the box office, against a $210 million budget. However, Transformers: Age of Extinction almost looked very different.
Every Michael Bay Transformers Movie
Release Year
Transformers
2007
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
2009
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
2011
Transformers: Age of Extinction
2014
Transformers: The Last Knight
2017
Dwayne Johnson Was Offered Transformers 4 Before Mark Wahlberg
Johnson Confirmed His Casting Online
Though Mark Wahlberg is remembered as the leading man of Transformers: Age of Extinction, the role was originally supposed to go to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. In 2013, a full year before Transformers 4 premiered, Johnson replied to a question on X, which asked whether he would be in the next Transformers movie. Johnson said, “Michael Bay offered me Transformers, but I was unavailable… Then Wahlberg was offered the role.” Based on this response, Michael Bay’s Transformers movies might have looked much different if it wasn’t for Johnson’s busy schedule.
To be fair, though, Transformers: Age of Extinction might have faced the same exact fate whether Cade Yeager was played by Mark Wahlberg or Dwayne Johnson. For the most part, critiques of Transformers 4 revolved around the movie’s jumbled-up plot and disappointing writing. Although the special effects received some appreciation, critics could not get around the film’s long runtime and goofy script. Johnson likely could not have changed that. Furthermore, Johnson likely wouldn’t have affected the film’s incredible box office, either.
Hercules Prevented Dwayne Johnson From Starring In Transformers: Age Of Extinction
Johnson Starred In Hercules In 2014
The reason why Dwayne Johnson was “unavailable” when Michael Bay offered him Transformers was that Johnson was starring in another movie: Hercules. The action-adventure fantasy film followed Johnson as the demigod Hercules, who led the Thracian army against an evil warlord. In terms of success, Hercules did better and worse than Transformers 4. The movie earned numerous positive reviews, yet it earned only $244 million compared to Transformers 4’s $1 billion. Regardless, there’s no telling how Dwayne Johnson’s career might have looked different if he had joined up with the Transformers franchise.