Dwayne Johnson, Hayward Native, Gets His Star On the Walk Of Fame

HOLLYWOOD (CNS) - Football-player-turned-professional wrestler-turned- actor Dwayne Johnson received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Wednesday, one week before the release of his latest film, "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle."

"I came into this business -- 2018 will mark 18 years in Hollywood, and that is a very long time of blood, sweat and earning respect and doing the things that we do that we like saying on social media," he said.

"... The only thing I knew when I got into this business ... was I was going to be committed to putting in the work, and I was going to put in the work (with) my own two hands," he said. "That was what I was gonna do. So for me, years later, to be here and celebrate this and get this star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame signifies things coming full circle."

Tom Rothman, chairman of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, which is distributing "Jumanji," was among those joining Johnson at the ceremony in front of the Hollywood & Highland complex.

The star is the 2,624th since the completion of the Walk of Fame in 1961 with the first 1,558 stars.

Johnson's recent films include "Baywatch," "The Fate of The Furious," "Central Intelligence" and "San Andreas."

His other film credits include three other installments of the "Fast and Furious" franchise, "Fast Five," "Fast and Furious 6" and "Furious 7"; "Hercules"; "Snitch"; "G.I. Joe: Retaliation"; "Empire State"; "Pain & Gain"; "Race to Witch Mountain"; "Get Smart"; "The Game Plan"; and "Be Cool."

Future films include "Jungle Cruise," based on the Disneyland ride, and a "Fast and Furious" spinoff based on his character.

Johnson also stars in the HBO comedy "Ballers."

Johnson was born May 2, 1972, in the east San Francisco Bay Area community of Hayward and raised in Hawaii and Pennsylvania.

Johnson played defensive tackle at the University of Miami. His football career ended with a stint on the practice roster of the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League in 1995.

Johnson became a professional wrestler in 1996, following his father, Rocky Johnson, and grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia. He would become an eight-time World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment champion.

City News Service; Photo: Dwayne Johnson poses for a photo at a ceremony honoring him with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP)