A new promo video for Young Rock reveals that the show will explore Dwayne Johnson's early days, including a failed stint as a County & Western star. Johnson's NBC sitcom was ordered straight to series by the broadcast network in early 2020, based on the premise that fans of the former wrestling star and current box office superstar will tune in to watch how Johnson became The Rock they all know and love. Nahnatchka Khan and Jeff Chiang are the show's executive producers, alongside Johnson and his Seven Bucks Productions team.
Khan is best known for creating Fresh Off The Boat and Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23, which featured Chiang as a writer. The pair have written the pilot episode for Young Rock, which recently announced its full cast. Besides Johnson, who will appear in each episode, likely providing context or narration, three actors have been cast to play him at ages 10, 15, and 20. Additionally, the family he grew up alongside has also been cast, meaning that the show won't just focus on Johnson, but those who raised and influenced him too.
Now, a new promo video from Johnson's Instagram account reveals just what the show will cover. Johnson says that the show will follow him from his childhood to the wrestling days, through his kleptomaniac phase, a surprising stint as a wannabe outlaw Country & Western singer to the more familiar narrative of his days playing college football in the early 1990s. Johnson adds that production on the show has already started in Australia in the caption. You can watch the video below:
The most surprising revelation here is that Johnson briefly wanted to be a Country star - that brief period in his life is sure to be mined for a considerable amount of comedy. Based on his singing voice in Moana, The Rock is far from the greatest vocalist who ever lived. Besides that, the show's synopsis seems to contain few surprises. As Johnson himself says in the video, his background is fairly well known, and it sounds like Young Rock will mostly cover familiar territory.
However, that doesn't mean the show won't be entertaining. Given the strong talent behind the camera, it's likely to be a funny and entertaining take on the superstar's youth. There isn't a final release date for Young Rock as of yet, but barring any coronavirus complications, it's likely to debut during the Fall 2021 season on NBC. Meanwhile, fans will likely get more insight into the show from the man himself.
Source: Dwayne Johnson/Instagram