Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Pens Heartfelt Tribute to Hulk Hogan: “Thank You for the House, Brother”
Dwayne Johnson—universally known as The Rock—has paid a deeply emotional tribute to Hulk Hogan following the wrestling icon’s death at age 71. Taking to Instagram, Johnson remembered Hogan not just as a fellow wrestler, but as a childhood hero and monumental figure in sports entertainment history.
In his moving post, Johnson shared a nostalgic story from his youth: returning Hogan’s iconic “Hulkster” headband backstage at Madison Square Garden. That moment came full circle 17 years later, when the two legends clashed in a historic main event at WrestleMania X8 in 2002.
“I’m standing in the middle of the ring and facing you – one of my wrestling heroes,” Johnson wrote. “When you kicked out of my Rock Bottom, just listen to that crowd go ELECTRIC. I’ve never felt anything like it in my career. That roar was all for you.”
Johnson praised Hogan’s unmatched ability to fill arenas across the country during his prime, calling him the true “Greatest of All Time.”
“You may have passed the torch to me that night, but make no mistake—you drew the house. You built the legacy. And from the bottom of my soul, thank you for the house, brother.”
Despite a rocky history outside the ring—particularly after Hogan faced backlash in 2015 over racially insensitive comments—Johnson acknowledged their complex relationship with honesty.
“My dad and uncle helped train Terry back in Florida in the ‘70s. I’ve known him a long time. I didn’t know him to be a racist,” he stated at the time. “He said what he said, and he’s paying the price.”
In his final tribute, The Rock focused not on controversy, but on legacy—a legacy that forever altered the face of professional wrestling. As one icon bids farewell to another, Johnson’s message reverberates across the wrestling world: “Thank you for the house.”
