In news that either means a great a deal or nothing at all, movie star and A-list celebrity Dwyane “The Rock” Johnson has endorsed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the 2020 presidential election. Johnson, a self-described Independent with centrist views, posted a video to his Twitter page and to his YouTube, where he said, “Now, this is something that I’ve certainly not done in the past, so I’m gonna go big. You guys know me, if I go, I go big!”
Johnson, who has never publicly endorsed a candidate, sat down for a virtual conversation with Biden and Harris, which he shared along with his endorsement.
As a political independent & centrist, I’ve voted for both parties in the past. In this critical presidential election, I’m endorsing @JoeBiden & @KamalaHarris.
Progress takes courage, humanity, empathy, strength, KINDNESS & RESPECT.
We must ALL VOTE: https://t.co/rZi1mxh8DC pic.twitter.com/auLbc8xDBv
— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) September 27, 2020
Johnson asked Biden and Harris what they would do to earn the respect of Americans if they were elected. Biden responded by saying, “By doing what we say we’re going to do. By keeping our word. By leveling with the American people. By taking responsibility. When we fail, acknowledge it. We’re not gonna be perfect, but take responsibility. Say this is what I’m going to do, this is what I believe, and tell the truth.”
Harris responded to the question by discussing the importance of trust, saying “it’s a reciprocal relationship, you give and you receive trust. And one of the foundations of trust is truth. You must speak truth, but here’s the reality: truth can sometimes be really difficult to hear, and for that reason, sometimes people don’t speak it. But you cannot have trust if you don’t speak truth.”
Harris also touched on the collective grief the country is experiencing, both in the loss of lives due to the pandemic, and in the loss of normalcy and stability in our lives. It’s still stunning to hear Harris and Biden address the massive, unreleased feelings of grief that the trump administration has largely ignored. We’re a nation in desperate need of catharsis, of acknowledgment that 200K people have died due to this pandemic. It’s something we have yet to see addressed on the national stage, leaving many Americans oscillating between fear, anxiety, and numbness.
Harris described herself and Biden as “motivated by healing” and Johnson emphasized the importance of “progress through humanity.” Johnson ended the video by saying, “the most powerful way for us to make progress, to me, is through humanity, is through decency … through equality, progress through kindness, ’cause kindness matters.”
It’s a stirring and welcome message from a universally beloved celebrity. Johnson’s message was met with retweets and favorable comments from democrats, and vitriol by republicans. And while Johnson is undoubtedly the highest profile celebrity to endorse the Biden Harris campaign, I’m curious to see whether his endorsement will hold any weight outside of the echo chamber of Twitter. I’m also curious to see if The Rock’s endorsement leads to major backlash from Trumpers. After all, who among us is immune to the nuclear-powered charisma of this man?
Finally, while we all love The Rock, will anyone actually be motivated to change their minds and their vote thanks to a celebrity endorsement? It will be interesting to see how Johnson’s endorsement affects the race (if at all) and what role (if any) he will play on the campaign trail. If anything, at least it will make Donald Trump furious.
(via Twitter, featured image: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
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