Dwayne Johnson has been cast as Hawaiian king Kamehameha I in Robert Zemeckis upcoming historical epic The King. According to Deadline, it has long been Johnson’s dream to star in a story about Kamehameha. Johnson’s maternal grandfather, “High Chief” Peter Maiva was a pioneer of pro-wrestling in Hawaii.
Forrest Gump and Back To The Future director Zemeckis is helming The King from a script by Braveheart writer Randall Wallace for New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. The film is slated for production in 2020, following Johnson’s work on Disney’s Jungle Cruise (with Emily Blunt), the Fast And The Furious spin-off, Hobbs And Shaw, and the Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle sequel. Johnson’s turn as Black Adam in the DCEU will also be happening at some point in the future. As ever, Johnson is the busiest man in Hollywood – and throwing in a starring role in a major historical epic probably won’t phase him at all.
Kamehameha, also known as Kamehameha the Great, is the founder and first ruler of the kingdom of Hawaii. He united the Hawaiian Islands into one royal kingdom in 1810 after a long period of conflict. He was believed to be born in 1758, the year Halley’s comet passed over Hawaii; and it is said that his greatness was prophesied by a legend that predicted a light in the sky with feathers like a bird.
Johnson, who is of Polynesian descent, has a tattoo covering his shoulder and chest. The tattoo tells the story of his Polynesian background, which spans Samoa, New Zealand, and Hawaii.
More news on the production of The King when we hear it.