In the wake of the school shooting at Apalachee High School on September 4th, 2024, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson planned a surprise for the football team, after losing their assistant coach and teacher, Richard Aspinwall, in the tragedy.
Dwayne invited the team to Trilith Studios in Georgia, where production was filming Moana Live Action, during their visit Dwayne promised the players that he would attend their first home game after a much-needed hiatus. While at the game, Dwayne gave the team a pep talk, in the locker room, before they took the field. He also reunited with players and met some of the survivors and their families.
Dwayne constantly states moments like these are “the best part of fame”, moments where he can bring smiles to a community. In this case, after the tragedy the Apalachee community endured, Dwayne asked for his schedule to be cleared to share a special moment with the team and its faculty.
The Apalachee football team traveled from Winder, Georgia, to Trilith Studios in Fayetteville, Georgia, under the impression they were visiting the studio for a tour at Dwayne’s invitation. Once on the soundstage, Dwayne surprised the team, greeting them personally with handshakes and hugs and sharing heartfelt remarks.
Success was defined by real life connection and community uplifting. Although, success here was never based on assets performance. Asset and other cutdown material, did reach 88.4million impressions across all platforms.