Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Rolls Into Beijing, Pumps Iron in CBD
Can you smell what The Rock is cooking? Guomao certainly could yesterday morning, as the wrestler and extremely well-paid Hollywood star posted an Instagram clip in which he pumped iron at Hotel Jen's Trainyard gym. Dwayne Johnson, as he is better known nowadays, is in Beijing as part of a press junket for his latest action adventure flick, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
The CBD gym was named one of the world's best by CNN a few months back
The video boasted oddly high production value, practically giving it the sheen of a movie trailer, rather than the shaky, handheld, and sweat-infused selfie video that the majority of us could hope to put out. The video begins with footage of Johnson (or 岩石·强森 yánshí qiáng sēn) arriving at Hotel Jen, with the complex's Beersmith bar logo clearly visible in the background. From there, he makes his way to the hotel's gym (which we were quite impressed by during a visit this past May and which CNN named it one of the world's best gyms for travelers last year). Johnson then quips about not knowing which dumbells to hoist whenever he travels internationally because he can't convert pounds to kilos. His solution is exactly what his fans would hope for: just choosing the heaviest one he could lift.
Johnson took to Instagram again later in the morning to crack a few jokes about the time zone differences in a far less official looking video, saying: "It is Thursday morning here, and I know that it's Wednesday evening back in the States ... I'm just checking in to let you know Thursday is going to be a pretty damn good day. I know, 'cause I'm livin' it now!"
The rest of Johnson's Beijing itinerary has yet to be announced, though you can expect to see some more standard red carpet appearances and guest spots on TV or maybe even broadcast showbiz programs.
The 2017 rendition of Jumanji that he's currently promoting is a reboot of the 1996 original starring Robin Williams. It has opened to decent reviews and solid box office back in the States, most likely because it's a family-friendly alternative to latest umteenth Star Wars installment, and due in no small part to the star power of Johnson who has a sizeable pull here in large part due to his part in China's highest ever grossing foreign film Fate of the Furious.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle opens in China on Jan 12 one week after the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi and may very well exceed box office expectations here against that sci-fi juggernaut, which doesn't hold as much appeal for Chinese audiences.
The Rock on The Wall a few years back
Regardless of how big a splash The Rock makes with this new Jumanji movie in the Chinese market, we're poised to see much more of him in the near future. That's because Johnson is set to shoot Skyscraper here this summer (being touted as “Die Hard in China”). He'll also star in an upcoming and not so little remake of the cult classic Big Trouble In Little China, though that will likely take place in a more America-centric Chinatown.
Photo: Instagram.com, CNN.com, Press VIP Room
Top Stories This Week:
Beijingers Are Buzzing About: