Bad Blood had an unexpected guest arrive following the main event, as Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson strutted out with his absurd People's Championship belt to stare down Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes. WWE fans immediately started speculating on what this meant for upcoming WWE events, but their fun was quickly squashed by a big rumor about his alleged status for WrestleMania 41.
What's going on with The Rock, and when will he next return to the WWE? We don't have all the specifics for when and where he'll be performing, but "The Great One" did pop up on Instagram to clarify something about his status for WrestleMania 41 after a big rumor started spreading.
The Alleged Rumor: The Rock Said He Wouldn't Compete At WrestleMania 41
The Rock's arrival at Bad Blood felt random, especially after Wrestling Observer Newsletter's Dave Meltzer alleged The Rock would not compete at WrestleMania 41. As the F4Wonline insider reported, a source from within WWE claimed that Dwayne Johnson had already told the WWE he would be unavailable for a match at WM41. The rumor went on to state that he'd be too busy, presumably with upcoming movies and other projects, and wouldn't be able to commit to the time needed for the storyline.
If the rumor were true, it would make his surprise appearance at Bad Blood, currently available to stream with a Peacock Premium subscription, look ridiculous. Why would The Rock show up with his People's Championship title, stare down both competitors and then skip a chance to pursue an actual title? It would be confusing if he ends up having nothing to do with this upcoming WrestleMania season, so I was already hoping this report turned out to be bunk.
The Rock Responded To The Rumor In A Pretty Blunt Way
Fortunately, it seems Dwayne Johnson didn't want to stay quiet about the recent rumors after posting about his recent return on Instagram. When asked directly by a commenter if the rumors were true that he was already bowing out of WrestleMania 41, he said the following:
Don’t believe any of that bullshit 😉👊🏾
Leave it to Dwayne Johnson to immediately squash such speculation, as he has already done a couple of times in 2024. There were questions about his availability after he sustained an injury on the set of his movie Sunshine and Pain, and even Cody Rhodes seemed to be hedging bets in interviews that Rock would be available.
Johnson had every opportunity to do the same, but instead doubled down fresh off the injury and ensured WrestleMania 41 would be one of the biggest main events in professional wrestling history. It's hard to imagine what main event could be larger than Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns' famous rematch, though rumblings have suggested it'll be a triple-threat championship match that includes the previous two and The Rock.
That would be a huge main event and one that would get more eyes on shows like Monday Night Raw when it joins Netflix in 2025. Still, I'm trying not to get too excited, because WrestleMania 41 is still a long way off, and it's a little soon for Dwayne Johnson or really anyone to make guarantees about their status for the big night. I'll continue to cross my fingers, though, that it happens, and the match is as awesome as it sounds.
We'll see if we learn more about The Rock's plans on Monday Night Raw, which is currently still on USA on Mondays at 8:00 p.m. ET. I would love to see Dwayne Johnson make some appearance on the show soon if only to put speculation about his commitment to WWE's future to rest.
