Dwayne Johnsonis considered by many to be one of the nicest guys in all of Hollywood, not to mention one of its biggest stars, literally and figuratively. Earlier this month, the actor took to his Facebook page, as he often does, posting a new video from the set ofFast and Furious 8, but this time, the video was accompanied by an uncharacteristic rant, where he called some of his unidentified male co-stars “candy asses.” Today we have more details on what lead to this rant, and why several members of the cast and crew thought his post was “unacceptable.”
The Hollywood Reporterreveals that the actor’s online rant was caused by some drama on the set that unfolded on August 8, after franchise star/producerVin Dieselkept the cast and crew waiting for him to emerge from his trailer. This was a regular occurrence on the set, and the rest of the cast and crew weren’t bothered by the delays, with one source revealing that this is how the actor/producer has “run things for the past several movies.” Sources claim that tensions between the two actors weren’t “any worse than usual,” but whenDwayne Johnsonposted his rant on Facebook, it “blindsided” everyone. An unidentified source claims that, while both actors may have publicly mended their fences, the cast wasn’t happy thatDwayne Johnsonmade this spat public. Here’s what the source, an agent who represents one of theFast & Furious 8cast members, had to say.
“Everyone was shocked that The Rock posted that. That was seen as kind of unacceptable.”
WhileThe Rocknever identified which male co-stars he was calling out, many believed he was referring toVin Diesel. This report reveals thatVin Dieselreportedly approachedDwayne Johnsonthe next day, over both his post, and a joke in the actor’s HBO seriesBallers. There is a scene whereDwayne Johnson’s character Spencer Strasmore is asked if he isVin Diesel, and he replies that he’s bigger and better looking thanVin Diesel. This reportedly lead to a heated exchange inDwayne Johnson’s trailer.
A few days after the rant,Dwayne Johnsonposted anotherset videofeaturing stunt coordinatorJJ Perryand his stunt team, where he briefly touched upon the conflict and that it has all been cleared up. This report claims that Universal Pictures chairmanDonna Langleyshut down the idea of traveling to the set, in order to solve this conflict, and while producerNeal Moritzwas in Rio for the Olympics, executive vice presidentMark Sourianwas charged with resolving this matter. Here’s what a source had to say, clarifying that everything is fine between both actors.
“What happened is over, and no one expects there to be any lingering effects. When it comes time to promote the movie, this will have no bearing.”
Even though this is the statement being issued to the public, it appears that a lot of the cast simply can’t get over the fact that the Rock took this feud public, and they’re still upset about it. A number of unnamed individuals are still mad that he went public on social media. Though, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard reports aboutVin Dieselbeing difficult on the set. It was rumored thatFurious 7directorJames Wanturned down the chance to return forFast 8becauseVin Dieselwas said to be “extraordinarily difficult,” often calling in the filmmakers for late-night script sessions to create new dialogue he was comfortable with.
The actor’s reps denied these reports, and there haven’t been any indications of trouble on the set untilDwayne Johnsonposted his rant. We’ll have to wait and see how this affects the release ofFast & Furious 8, which hits theaters June 02, 2025. Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel are both expected to return for the already announcedFast 9andFast 10, so everything should blow over before too long.
