Dwayne Johnson addresses a damning report about the apparent ballooning of TheWrap earlier this year, which claimed that Johnson frequently urinated into water bottles on set while also regularly being seven or more hours late, ballooning the film's budget to $250 million from $200 million.

In a recent interview with GQ, Johnson addresses these allegations about his behavior on the Red One set, itting that there is some truth to some of the claims. Regarding peeing in a bottle, Johnson reveals that "Yeah. That happens.” The actor, who calls the entire controversy "bullsh*t," its that he was sometimes late, too, but not to the extent outlined in TheWrap's report:

“Yeah, that happens too. But not that amount, by the way. That was a bananas amount. That’s crazy. Ridiculous.”

Kasdan comes to Johnson's defense in the matter, revealing that the actor “never missed a day of work ever. He has a lot going on. He can be late sometimes, but such is Hollywood—that’s the case with everybody. Honestly, I’ve made three big movies with him. I’ve never seen him be anything but great to every single person on the set.”

Evans also shared kind words about Johnson and his work ethic, explaining that his Red One costar was more considerate and predictable than some of the costars he's had on other projects:

“In of the guy that I saw, compared to some of the things I’ve seen on other movies with other actors who are not only not conscious of other people’s time and efforts, but they’re unpredictable? I found Dwayne to be—we all know exactly what he’s going to do when he’s going to do it.”

Johnson's morning workouts were cited in the report as one reason for his tardiness, and, while the actor did workout in the morning before coming to set, Evans reveals that this was built into the film's shooting schedule:

“But this is something that the producers, the director, and it’s all his team, so they all know this. So it’s all basic. It’s not like he’s late unexpectedly, and I wouldn’t even call it late. He comes in slightly later on certain mornings, but it’s part of the plan. It’s worked into the schedules and everyone knows it, so he shows up when he’s scheduled to show up.”

Adding a final word on the entire controversy, Johnson makes clear that he's an open book: “I’ve said a thousand times: ‘Hey, I’m here. Come and ask me. And I’ll tell you the truth.’ ”

What Red One's Budget Means For The Film's Chances Of Success

Will The Dwayne Johnson Movie Break Even?

$250 million is a major budget for any movie that's not a superhero movie. If Red One was made at $250 million, which neither Johnson nor Kasdan address, it could be looking at a break-even point of between $500 million and $625 million. Though Johnson remains one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, his track record at the box office as a leading man is somewhat spotty. Black Adam, for example, which was supposed to be his major foray into the DC universe, was at best underwhelming, grossing $393 million worldwide.

Johnson's last real box office hit was Jumanji: The Next Level in 2019, so Red One is actually set to be an interesting test for the actor's bankability. Reports of Johnson's behavior are unlikely to have any real impact, but early signs are still mixed. Red One reviews have been overwhelmingly negative from critics thus far, and the film has only 36% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critical response isn't always indicative of box office performance, however, and Red One's early numbers from oversees are relatively promising, with the Christmas movie having grossed $26.6 million already before its domestic release.

Jumanji: The Next Level grossed an impressive $801.7 million worldwide.

Our Take On Johnson's Red One Set Behavior

Audiences Probably Won't Care Either Way

It's likely that the average movie-goer isn't aware of the reports of Johnson's on-set behavior, but it probably wouldn't matter if they were. Will Smith, for example, was thought to be risky as a leading man after his infamous slap of Chris Rock at the Oscars in 2022, but the success of Bad Boys: Ride or Die this summer proves that Smith's star power remains as strong as ever.

Even though urinating in bottles is ittedly quite strange, Johnson's punctuality didn't seem to be an issue on set. If it had been, Smith's "comeback" proves it likely wouldn't have impacted how or whether audiences engage with Red One anyway.

Source: GQ