The WWE World has one after another big announcement coming in for their fans. After the news that WWE Raw will be available on Netflix in 2025 to stream the live events after they signed a more than $5 billion deal.
It came out that wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, has joined the TKO Board of Directors. TKO Group Inc. is the parent firm of WWE, which was formed when WWE merged with the UFC.
The Rock made an unpredictable comeback.
Through an Instagram post on Tuesday, TKO Group Holdings announced appointing Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, to their board of directors. Dwayne Johnson established a successful wrestling career under the ring name- The Rock. He further carried on this success along with his name in his acting career and is now back with an unpredictable field chosen to prove his skills by becoming a member of the TKO Group Board of Directors.
This new post by The Rock on the board of TKO Group was an in-trade business deal. Under this agreement, The Rock will have the ownership rights to his ‘The Rock’ trademark as part of a new services and merchandising agreement with WWE, and in return, he will provide all promotional, listening, and other services to the company.
The holdings of TKO Group Inc. are the medium that merges WWE with the UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship, which has a value of $9.3 billion and $12.1 billion, respectively. From the total 100% shares, endeavor owns 51% of the controlling interest in the company, whereas WWE shareholders hold 49%.
The Instagram post of TKO Group, which announced the joining of The Rock to the board of directors, had a note from the CEO of TKO Group, Ariel Emanuel, which read, “I am thrilled to partner with Dwayne and welcome his immense talent to TKO’s Board.”.
Further, it says, “Dwayne brings an incredible track record of creating content and building globally recognized consumer branches, and he will play a key role in realizing our ambitions for TKO.”
Other than Dwayne Johnson, the TKO group has appointed the founder and executive chairman of Uptake Technologies, Brad Keywell, an American entrepreneur, to their board of directors.
Dwayne Johnson made his WWF (now WWE) debut as Rocky Maivia, a name derived from the name of his father, Hall of Famer Rocky Johnson, who was also the first black champion in WWE history alongside Tony Atlas, and a combination of the name of his grandfather Peter Maiva, who was a sumptuous American professional wrestler, was later posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2008.
The Rock played an integral role in the development and success of the World Wrestling Federation during the attitude era for which he wrestled for eight years before pursuing a career in acting. His movies have grossed over $3.5 billion in North America and $10.5 billion worldwide. Other than having an acting and wrestling career, The Rock also co-owns the United Football League.
In a statement, The Rock said, “Being on the TKO board of directors and taking full ownership of my name, The Rock, is not only unprecedented but incredibly inspiring, as my crazy life is coming full circle.”
He also added that, at his core, he is a builder who builds for and serves the people, and Ari is building something truly game-changing. Further, continuing with his statement, he said, “I’m very motivated to help continue to globally expand TKO, WWE, and UFC businesses as the worldwide leaders in sports and entertainment.”
The Rock shared that he will support and proudly represent so many athletes and performers who show up every day, putting in the hard work with their own hands to make those dreams come true and deliver for our audience, as “I have been there, I’m still there, and this is for them.”