Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson joins the TKO (the parent company of WWE and UFC) board. The company announced that it has entered into an agreement with WWE, which includes a services and merchandising deal with Johnson. In addition to this, the WWE superstar finally secured full ownership of “The Rock” trademark – a name almost synonymous with the WWE itself.
TKO CEO Ari Emanuel stated: “I am thrilled to partner with Dwayne and welcome his immense talent to TKO’s Board. Dwayne brings an incredible track record of creating content and building globally recognized consumer brands, and he will play a key role in realizing our ambitions for TKO.”
Dwayne Johnson leveraged his wrestling fame to build a successful career in film, as well as a diverse business portfolio that includes Seven Bucks Productions, Teremana Tequila, ZOA Energy, Project Rock apparel, and the United Football League.
Vince McMahon, now TKO’s executive chair, only has words of admiration as the Rock joins the TKO Board: “Very few people on the planet understand the convergence of sports, entertainment, media, and business like The Rock”.
The superstar’s board appointment took effect last Tuesday. TKO says that this major decision reflects its “commitment to delivering long-term value and strong performance for shareholders through strategic growth initiatives across both UFC and WWE.”
Johnson is understandably very excited about the board appointment and his full ownership of his trademark nickname.
“At my core, I’m a builder who builds for and serves the people, and Ari is building something truly game-changing. I’m very motivated to help continue to globally expand our TKO, WWE, and UFC businesses as the worldwide leaders in sports and entertainment — while proudly representing so many phenomenal athletes and performers who show up every day putting in the hard work with their own two hands to make their dreams come true and deliver for our audiences. I’ve been there, I’m still there and this is for them.” he expressed in his statement.
“The Rock” is named after Rocky Johnson, the first Black champion in WWE history (with Tony Atlas), according to WWE.
“My grandfather, ‘High Chief’ Peter Maivia, and my dad, Rocky ‘Soulman’ Johnson, would’ve never thought this day would come, which is why I’m very humbled to have a seat at the table that has decades of history and family legacy for me. A table that my family helped to build. Being on the TKO Board of Directors, and taking full ownership of my name, ‘The Rock’, is not only unprecedented but incredibly inspiring as my crazy life is coming full circle.”, Johnson says.
On Tuesday, TKO announced that Brad Keywell will join their board of directors. Keywell is a serial entrepreneur who has co-founded and led several successful companies, such as Groupon, Echo Global Logistics, MediaOcean, and Uptake Technologies, where he currently serves as founder and executive chairman. With the addition of Johnson and Keywell, the TKO board increases from 11 to 13 members.
With all of the news surrounding The Rock, we can’t help but be reminded of this gem of a product from years ago:
