During this Sunday’s upcoming episode of Oprah’s Master Class, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson reveals that if it weren’t for a bout of depression after his football career almost came to an end, he’d never have made the life-altering decision to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a pro wrestler.
In the preview clip above, Johnson relates how he arrived at the decision to go from football to wrestling, which ultimately led to him becoming The Rock we all know today. After playing football for the University of Miami, Johnson ended up in the Canadian Football League after being passed over by the NFL. He was subsequently cut from the Calgary team, and fell into a state of depression. It was that which led him to give up on football altogether, so basically what he’s saying is that Canada is responsible for your fave. Yeah. You’re welcome.
Aside from opening up and admitting his past struggles with mental illness, The Rock offers the advice for people dealing with the same thing, and the words he wished someone would have said to him while he was suffering:
You’ve just gotta remember: Hold on to that fundamental quality of faith. Have faith that on the other side of your pain is something good.
The OWN special takes us through Johnson’s career, from his rough start as Rocky Maivia, what it’s like getting booed by 20,000 fans, and what ultimately led him to leave pro wrestling behind to devote himself fully to acting. Oprah’s Master Class airs Sunday night at 8 p.m. EST on OWN.
