Rock Bottom: Dwayne Johnson's 5 Worst Roles, Ranked

Dwayne Johnson has carved a large niche out for himself in Hollywood. Not every film he's picked out has been an unqualified success. But between children's films like "Moana," action flicks like "The Rundown" and the "Fast and Furious" franchise, and out-of-the-box picks like "Southland Tales," he's proved he's got decent performing chops and the ability to draw an audience. Beyond the lifting of an eyebrow or the shouting of a catchphrase, he can deliver a performance. If John Cena has become the wrestler-turned-actor who excels at comedy and Dave Bautista is slowly developing into a character actor, then Johnson has proven to be a crowd-pleasing, versatile action star who also shines in other genres.

Nothing, however, will protect even the cleverest of actors from falling afoul of a bad selection. In this case, Johnson has starred in a few clunkers during his time on the big screen. Whether he's playing a mean hockey player, a warrior king, a superhero, or a lifeguard, not even his charm, sense of humor, and cocky spirit could save these movies from total cultural oblivion. Come with us as we layeth the smackdown upon the very worst of Dwayne Johnson's work. And in this case, you might wish you couldn't smell what he's cooking.

Dwayne Johnson has managed to secure a foothold on the family film market over the years; "The Game Plan" is still charming years later, and "Jungle Cruise" and the "Jumanji" series prove that he can charm audiences of all ages. So one's left to wonder what went wrong with "The Tooth Fairy," a kiddie flick that makes Johnson a sour presence and puts forth a predictable and stale plotline that disappoints. 

The story follows Derek "Tooth Fairy" Thompson, a minor-league hockey player who has gained his nickname thanks to his propensity for knocking out his opponent's molars. Karma comes to visit Derek's mean-spirited self after he hurts the feelings of a young hockey fan. He is subsequently sentenced to act as a tooth fairy and pay back his debt to the universe. Derek is not a natural — but soon finds love and purpose in his journey.

The end result is almost as bad as Hulk Hogan's "Mr. Nanny," with a one-joke "look at the tough guy wearing frilly clothing" premise and a sappy retread of ancient family film themes about a mean guy turning nice and heroes earning their way to a big victory. While it was a hit at the box office and proved successful enough to spawn a sequel starring Larry the Cable Guy, critics and audiences have not been kind to "Tooth Fairy" since its release, and it reigns over the lower half of Johnson's resume on IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes.

To be fair to Dwayne Johnson, this was one of his earliest roles. He was still a neophyte actor when he took on "The Scorpion King," but his inflexibly wooden style in it does not do the picture any favors. Nor does its sub-"Conan: The Barbarian" writing, which ages it like a cup of milk left out in the desert heat.

While he's an antagonist in "The Mummy Returns," Mathayus (Johnson) is the hero in this movie. The film charts his rise to the top of the heap of the local confederation of tribes by defeating pure evil. With grit, magic, and determination, Mathayus becomes a king — and everyone knows how that ends up going for him.

The "Mummy" franchise may have changed action movies as we know them, but the pedigree it gave to "The Scorpion King" and its box office success has failed to give it cultural longevity. The film has gone the way of most WWE Pictures productions and disappeared into the ether, trailed by the brickbats of critics. It's definitely not among Johnson's best performances and not his most interesting action epic either. "The Scorpion King" franchise would go on to have several direct-to-DVD releases, all of them not staring Johnson, adding to the ignominy of the movie's legacy. While the actor is looking to reboot the franchise, perhaps it's wiser to leave Mathayus' story to be buried in the sands of time.

It's hard to make a successful film when half of what makes that character so great isn't a big part of the story. Black Adam is perhaps best known as Shazam's main villain, but his movie pits him against the Justice Society. Dwayne Johnson produced this one, and he wanted his childhood hero to be the main antagonist for Superman (Henry Cavill). The result was a film that continued to hasten the downslide of the DC Extended Universe.

Teth-Adam (Johnson) is a former slave who can harness the powers of several Egyptian gods. He's placed in stasis and awakened by a magical incantation in the modern day, where Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) deems him a threat. But there are worse people than Adam running about, including the Intergang syndicate, and Ishmael Gregor (Marwan Kenzari), the last descendant of the king who held Adam prisoner and slew his family. Adam must go on a rampage to save the son of the woman who awoke him from his ancient slumber.

Forget the post-release controversy and the film's inevitable entry into the box office bomb hall of fame; "Black Adam" doesn't work because it can't commit to making its central figure a full-out villain or hero. That shouldn't be a problem; gray-hatted individuals are usually interesting to follow, but Black Adam isn't unique enough. He's boring as a hero and ignorable as a villain. When the DC Universe reboots in 2025, Black Adam will not be a part of it — and there's a good reason for that.

Based on the TV phenomena that ruled the '90s, "Baywatch" should have been like shooting fish in a barrel. It ought to be loaded with campy fun, but instead, it splats to the ground, filled with antiquated humor. It wastes Dwayne Johnson's charm and the knowing charisma of Zac Efron, which is perhaps its biggest sin.

To be fair to the film, it doesn't take itself seriously, or go too far afield from your average "Baywatch" episode. Johnson's Mitch Buchannon is the head lifeguard mainstay, and he finds himself training four new lifeguards, including insubordinate rebel Matt Brody (Efron). A new drug hits the beach and Mitch and his team are pressed into service to nab the villains, but will they save the day?

"Baywatch" may have made back its cost, and it may have its tongue firmly planted in its cheek, but its lightweight ways aren't nearly as fun as they ought to be. The series that gave birth to it is a huge, sand-encrusted, deeply tanned target that its movie spin-off doesn't take advantage of. The original "Baywatch" had a "Gilligan's Island" crossover episode and an episode where a character was reincarnated into a dog. How on earth do most of its jokes end up falling so flat and its references come off as ... well, so pat and easy? Overall, it's a downer.

This is it: The movie that almost ended Dwayne Johnson's action career before it got off the ground. "Doom" should have been a walk in the park adaptation of a very popular blood-and-guts video game. Instead, it rips off "Alien," becoming a thriller where everything's foregone and the thrills are less than thrilling.

Johnson plays Sarge, one of eight space marines sent to investigate a distress call emitted by a Mars-based research faculty. What appears to be alien creatures turn out to be mutated humans, which forces Sarge to try to shoot his way out. Opposing him is the more humane John Grimm (Karl Urban). But the level of human interference involved is shocking — and the number of marines coming home proves to be very low. 

"Doom" was reviled by critics and drew only middling plaudits at best from fans, who felt the film was an insult to the game's bloody, meaty origins. The movie earned Johnson his first Razzie nomination and wasn't any great shakes at the box office. It nearly buried his chances of leading a film. Even Johnson himself admitted it was a cautionary tale as to what not to do when adapting a video game. But persistence — and better material — ended up guiding his career out of the Smackdown Hotel and somewhere much more fertile in the end.