Being A Nepo Baby 'Saved' Dwayne Johnson's Relationship With His Wrestler Daughter

Highlights

• The Rock's daughter, Simone Johnson, was a wrestler, with the hoop identify Ava Raine.
• When his oldest daughter was firstborn, Dwayne Johnson felt his wrestling profession strained his relationship with his daughter because of his busy agenda.
• Now, wrestling has brought Dwayne and Simone Johnson nearer and in the end saved their relationship.

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson has a lot to thank his wrestling career for. It gave him a a success career, helped him change into one of the biggest film stars in the world and helped him enhance his relationship with his daughter.

During a 2023 interview on The Pivot Podcast, Dwayne Johnson spoke about how wrestling full-time, then appearing full-time, meant he and his daughter Simone's relationship struggled as a result of he was once “all the time gone." Now that Simone Johnson has become a wrestler, the father and daughter have managed to become closer and bond over that.

Twenty-two-year-old Simone, who goes by Ava Raine in the WWE, is the daughter of The Rock and professional bodybuilder and businesswoman Dany Garcia. She is the co-creator of Seven Bucks Productions, a production company that produces many of The Rock’s movies. Garcia and The Rock married in 1997 and amicably split in 2007.

In the following, we take a look at why The Rock's daughter became a wrestler and what his relationship is like with Simone Johnson, also referred to as Ava. We also reveal whether Dwayne Johnson is also a "nepo baby."

How Dwayne Johnson's Daughter Became A Wrestler

In November 2017, The Rock's daughter expressed her interest in becoming a professional wrestler. She first came into the limelight when she served as the first Golden Globes ambassador at the 2018 Golden Globes. She was signed to IMG Models in 2017.

In February 2020, WWE announced that Simone had reported to the WWE Performance Center and started her training. She was one of the youngest talents to sign a contract with the company.

"To the little girl who fell in love with wrestling & stated 'this shall be my life sooner or later,' this is for you. I'm humbled, grateful & ready to work. Let's do this," Simone wrote in the caption of her 2020 submit announcing she'd signed with WWE.

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WWE announced that she'd begun training in 2020, but her ring debut was delayed due to a knee injury.

Two years after joining the WWE books, Simone Johnson changed her name to Ava Raine. Fans criticized her for abandoning her family name, to which she responded by saying, “I don’t understand why people being portrayed as separate individuals from their family name are such a heated topic."

"A name doesn’t discredit any prior accomplishments from any family... [I] could build my entire career around my father & people would still bash me anyway."

In an October 2022 episode of NXT, Simone Johnson made her first televised appearance as a member of Joe Gacy's villainous faction, Schism. Ava continues to be green on the planet of pro wrestling and most probably has a lengthy approach to pass sooner than she makes the primary WWE primary roster.

What Dwayne Johnson's Relationship Is Like With His Oldest Daughter

Dwayne Johnson's oldest daughter, Simone, was born on Aug. 14, 2001. She grew up in Florida and graduated from highschool in May 2019.

Johnson admits he turned into a father "when I was young, in my twenties”, when he was still trying to find himself. “If we’re lucky, we reach our fourth level, and we find ourselves a little bit (he laughed). We get a little bit more wiser," he said, regarding turning 40.

“So when I had Simone, I was flying by means of the seat of my pants. I was wrestling full-time, I started transitioning into motion pictures full-time. I had so much s**t going on so I love to say me and Simone grew up together." Although he was always gone, Johnson confirms the father-daughter duo always "tried to keep it in combination."

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“Now, years later, as she becomes a pro wrestler, it’s actually brought us closer together. So in a way, it’s helped save that relationship too, so, in many ways, pro wrestling has been my family’s savior.”

Dwayne Johnson revealed to the Oprah Winfrey Network that he once asked Simone, when she was 13, what she liked best about their relationship. The three-word answer affected him emotionally. “And she was like 'ahh!! Come on' and I’m like 'no (…) no, what’s the one thing that you love the most about our relationship?' And…she said, 'well that I trust you,'” the Jumani: Welcome To The Jungle star explained.

“For a 13-year-old girl to say that to her dad. Considering where I was at 13, the instability I had and she said well that I trust you and that we have a very special bond and that moved me.”

Is The Rock A Nepo Baby Too?

Simone Johnson is a fourth-generation wrestling talent. She follows in the footsteps of her great-grandfather 'High Chief' Peter Maiva, her grandfather Rocky 'Soul Man' Johnson and her father, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

The Rock comes from a prestigious family of Samoan wrestlers on his maternal grandfather’s side. His cousin Savelina Fanene is a WWE professional wrestler best known as Nia Jax.

The Rock’s late father, Rocky “Soul Man” Johnson, is a WWE Hall of Famer, and multiple-time world champion in the territories. His mother, Ata Maivia-Johnson, is the daughter of “High Chief” Peter Maivia, a WWE Hall of Famer and part of the Anoa’i dynasty. The Rock's parents met when they were tag team partners during an independent match.

Dwayne has consistently said that his relationship with Rocky had been “complex.”

“My father was a superhero to me,” Dwayne explained about his late father, who passed away in 2020. “Sometimes, growing up around wrestlers teaches you lessons in exciting ways.”

The Sweetest Things Dwayne Johnson Has Said About His Daughters

Dwayne Johnson is immensely proud that his daughter is following in his family's wrestling footsteps. "First of all, what an honour that my daughter needs to apply in my footsteps."

The San Andreas actor instructed host Jimmy Fallon, "But extra importantly, apply in my footsteps sounds cliche, however she actually needs to create and blaze her personal path, which is so important."

“It means the world to me,” Simone Johnson said in a remark after joining the WWE crew. “To know that my family has such a private connection to wrestling is really special to me and I believe thankful to have the opportunity, no longer most effective to wrestle, however to hold on that legacy.”

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