Why Will Smith Once Compared Himself to Dwayne Johnson
Will Smith was one of the few actors who could make a movie a blockbuster based on name alone. At his height, he commanded the kind of salary and box-office receipts that only a few actors have been able to do. Despite all of his accomplishments, however, there was a time when Smith was less worried about himself and more worried about Dwayne Johnson.
As Hollywood’s newfound box-office king, Smith couldn’t help but to zero in on the Jumanji star And doing so led to a self-discovery that Smith wasn’t ready for.
Why Will Smith compared himself to Dwayne Johnson
Will Smith has been open about feeling not as popular as he used to be. The possibility of Smith not having his grip around Hollywood like he used to was something that admittedly bothered the former rapper from Philly. Smith found himself calling Denzel Washington to express these feelings, and Washington gave him the advice he was looking for.
“I was probably 48 or something like that and I called Denzel,” Smith said in his latest interview with GQ. “’Listen. You’ve got to think of it as the funky 40s. Everybody’s 40s are funky. ‘”
Washington continued to tell Smith to wait until he hit his 50s, then he’d stop caring about whether or not he was still a box-office sensation. Although Smith would eventually listen, it took some time for him to reach that level of clarity. Especially since he was focusing on Hollywood’s new box office titan Dwayne Johnson.
Why Will Smith compared himself to Dwayne Johnson
In an interview with The Breakfast Club, the topic of Will Smith’s perceived dwindling star power was once again brought up. Smith revealed that he was, at one point, focused on the possibility that he wasn’t as bankable as he used to be. Part of that feeling came from watching Johnson’s rise in Hollywood, which has seen him lead several successful franchises.
“I had a brief moment there where I got really stuck on The Rock,” Smith said. “He’s doing all these billion-dollar movies and I got stuck on him, and that animal woke up again.”
But Smith didn’t let his focus on Johnson overwhelm him. He stopped comparing himself to others to focus on himself, which has led to a happier Will Smith.
“I realized there’s never enough,” Smith said. “You’ll never earn enough money. If you stick yourself on sex, you’ll never have enough sex. You’ll never have enough of anything in the material world. So, I’m into my space now when I’m letting go of that, and I just gotta be good with me.”
But did Will Smith really have anything to worry about when it came to Johnson? And is Dwayne Johnson at his peak a bigger superstar than Will Smith was?
Does Will Smith make more than Dwayne Johnson?
Will Smith had a head start on Johnson in the Hollywood business, but Johnson has caught up to the Ali star. Celebrity Net Worth reports that Smith’s net worth is $350 million, whereas Dwayne Johnson has earned over $400 million over the course of his career.
