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The Rock Shares Thoughts on His Epic Surprise Return to WWE
The Rock's shocking return on SmackDown is once again fueling rumors of his WWE future and his plans for WrestleMania 40.
You know how the old saying goes, right? Anything can happen in the WWE! Well, on Friday night, the WWE Universe was greeted by a very familiar face who proved the adage true.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson made an unannounced appearance on the September 15 edition of SmackDown, rightfully sending the WWE Universe into a frenzy. If you weren't one of the millions (and millions) of the WWE Universe who witnessed The Rock's return at the unfortunate expense of Austin Theory, here's the electrifying clip that has taken the internet (4.3 million YouTube views and counting) by storm:
What Are The Rock's Feelings on His Surprise WWE Appearance?
Austin Theory is the king of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, as he picked a fight with Pat McAfee that quickly turned south – and ended with an absolute smackdown at the hands of The Great One! Everything about The Rock's unexpected return was magical. Denver was 14,000 strong and was WrestleMania-loud in their reaction to The Rock's appearance. Over the weekend, The Rock looked to keep his cards close to his chest via a heartfelt social media message:
"I was – I'm still – completely blown away by this crowd reaction in Denver this past Friday night on SMACKDOWN," The Rock posted, noting that the crowd of 14,000 sounded more like 100,000!
Hats off to you, Denver: Being crowned a "Top 5 loudest crowd reactions" The Rock has ever heard is no easy task! And, although The Rock's sincere words of gratitude are special in their own right, the Most Electrifying Man in Sports and Entertainment knows better than to tease the WWE Universe with a random SmackDown cameo. So now, the question on the minds of millions of fans is straightforward: What does this mean for The Rock's WWE future?
Will The Rock Compete at WrestleMania 40?
As is the case whenever a WWE Superstar like The Rock or Stone Cold Steve Austin makes a shocking appearance on television, the rumors mills begin working overdrive. In The Rock's case, fans are frothing at the mouth over the prospect of The Great One competing at WrestleMania 40 in Philadelphia.
Ever since The Rock stepped on the toes of Roman Reigns during a seemingly innocuous media appearance in late 2022, the WWE Universe has been clamoring for The Rock to interject himself in the Bloodline's business. After all, Roman Reigns' story has been overly based around his family – and there's only one relative of the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion who can overshadow the Tribal Chief: The Rock. As the Bloodline saga enters a new era (with Jey Uso recently being traded to Monday nights courtesy of Cody Rhodes), fans worldwide consistently wonder what the next phase of Roman Reigns' unbelievable years-long story will be.
The Rock would be the ultimate next chapter, wouldn't it? However, with WrestleMania 40 still more than six months away, the WWE Universe may be ignoring the obvious: Could The Rock enjoy a truncated run in WWE in the near future, similar in style to John Cena's current schedule on Friday nights?
Will The Rock Continue to Appear on WWE Television in 2023?
When you're a real Hollywood A-lister (apologies to The Miz), your schedule is constantly filled with movie and TV shoots, red-carpet appearances, and other business endeavors. However, there's a lot going on in Hollywood – and The Rock is suddenly looking with an abundance of free time on his hands. A Superstar like The Rock likes to keep himself busy at all times, and in our eyes, there's no better way to pass the time than to continue to shock and awe the WWE Universe. Ultimately, the decision to continue appearing on WWE television is up to The Great One himself. Who knows; maybe he'll think back to the monster ovation he received in Denver on September 15 and try to top it this week on Raw or SmackDown!
The wheels are turning, and although it's impossible to predict when, where, and if The Rock will pop up next – it gives the WWE Universe all the more reason to tune into the WWE for the foreseeable future.
You can tune in to Peacock to watch WWE's Fastlane on October 7. In the meantime, catch up on all things WWE Universe on Peacock.
