Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson might be at the start of a new franchise with his hit movie “Black Adam,” but he also has a one-degree-of-separation link to the longest-running franchise if movie history.
In an interview with LADbible TV to promote his new film, Johnson pointed out a family tie to the James Bond series.
“You know, my grandfather was in ‘You Only Live Twice,'” said Johnson, referring to Peter Maivia’s role in the 1967 film. “He was he was a bad guy in ‘You Only Live Twice.’ He had this amazing fighting with Sean Connery.”
In that film, Maivia played a driver for the villainous Osato. Maivia’s character gets hit repeatedly with a sofa but gets dispatched when a statue is broken over his head. “You Only Live Twice” was Maivia’s only big screen appearance, and he was also an uncredited stunt coordinator on the production.
When asked if he would consider playing a Bond villain in a future 007 epic, Johnson laughingly declined.
“A Bond villain?” he said, “I see myself as James Bond. F*** the villain.”
And while no American actor has played Bond in the franchise’s 70-year history, Johnson insisted “it can happen” and cited the trans-Atlantic casting of British actor Henry Cavill playing Superman. But Johnson had another Briton in mind to play Bond.
“I do like the idea of my boy Idris Elba being Bond,” he said. “I like that idea a lot, so I’m going to advocate for that.”
