During the production of Dwayne Johnson eagerly awaited action-adventure comedy film Red One, a recent report indicates that his habitual tardiness has significantly inflated production costs.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, one of the highest-paid movie stars globally, has faced allegations of chronic tardiness and unprofessional conduct from multiple individuals involved in his upcoming film Red One. Co-starring Chris Evans, the movie’s budget reportedly soared by $50 million due to Johnson’s consistent arrival seven to eight hours late to set. According to The Wrap, Amazon has postponed the film’s release by a year due to on-set issues.
Directed by Jumanji: The Next Level director Jake Kasdan, Red One is a production of Amazon MGM Studios in collaboration with Seven Bucks Productions, The Detective Agency, and Chris Morgan Productions. Contrary to rumors suggesting labor strikes as the cause for the delay from a planned Christmas 2023 release to November 2024, The Wrap’s report highlights production challenges. These challenges include Johnson’s habitual tardiness and unprofessional behavior on set, coupled with the inexperience of producers, resulting in the budget skyrocketing to a staggering $250 million.
The publication, citing numerous unnamed insiders directly involved in the project, revealed that Johnson frequently arrives on set as much as eight hours late for the movie. However, his issues don’t stop there. “On set, away from his trailer, if he needs to pee, he doesn’t go to the public bathroom. He pees in a Voss water bottle and his team or a PA has to dispose of it,” one insider disclosed. “The only thing Dwayne was consistent at was being chronically late,” another source added. Johnson’s tardiness averaged seven to eight hours per day, and he missed several entire days of production, causing costs to escalate by at least $50 million according to three insiders. “It was a disaster,” one insider lamented, while another noted, “Dwayne truly doesn’t give a damn.”
According to the report, this isn’t a new issue and persisted even during the filming of the TV series Ballers, where he played the lead role. “He was regularly three to four hours late to set, keeping 100+ crew members waiting for no reason,” a producer who visited the set recalled. On the set of Rampage, Johnson was late an average of four to five hours daily, with one costar documenting his tardiness, according to two insiders. The reasons behind Johnson’s continual tardiness appear to stem from his reluctance to work a full shooting day, despite incorporating his three-hour daily workout routine.
Johnson’s behavior has sparked confrontations with co-stars, notably Vin Diesel. An insider informed People, “Vin has been having problems with The Rock because The Rock keeps showing up late for production. Sometimes he doesn’t show up at all, and he’s delaying the production.” A ‘huge fight’ erupted between him and his Red Notice co-star Ryan Reynolds, resulting in years of non-communication until recently resolving their differences.
Allegedly, his tardiness extends beyond the realm of cinema, as he was reportedly three hours late for his main event match at WrestleMania 40, an annual professional wrestling event organized by WWE.
Moreover, the report suggested that the relative inexperience of the film’s lead producer, Hiram Garcia of Seven Bucks Productions, along with Amazon MGM feature and production executives, Julie Rapaport and Glenn Gainor, exacerbated the situation.
However, in a statement to The Wrap, a spokesperson for Amazon MGM refuted any on-set issues with Red One or delays caused by Johnson’s lateness or Seven Bucks’ inexperience, which purportedly inflated the film budget. “Dwayne Johnson and Seven Bucks have been incredible partners on Red One — a film that audiences of all ages are going to love this holiday season. Any reporting that implies that we got to this point with him showing up seven-eight hours late to set is both ridiculous and false.” Separate denials were also issued by Netflix and individuals close to Red One and Red Notice.