The Rock Issues Statement on Hulk Hogan's Controversial Tirade
The Rock waded into Hulk Hogan's ongoing racism controversy Thursday, telling reporters he was "pretty disappointed" regarding Hogan's insensitive comments.
Dwayne Johnson was speaking on the press tour for HBO's Television Critics Association when he was asked his opinion about the leaked audio in which Hogan is caught using racial epithets, per Entertainment Weekly's James Hibberd:
"I've known [Hulk Hogan] for a lot of years. My dad helped train him in Florida in the '70s when he was breaking into the business. My uncles helped train him as well. So I'd not known him to be racist.
Johnson then smiled. "It's funny, it's one of those things where—I'm not justifying what he said—but we've all talked trash. Especially in private. He said what he said and now he's paying the price.
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Hogan is currently embroiled in a $100 million lawsuit with Gawker Media after the website published his sex tape online.
In that tape, Hogan is caught making racist remarks to then-lover Heather Clem, per Dylan Howard and Lachlan Cartwright of the National Enquirer. The joint investigation between the National Enquirer and Radar Online also uncovered audio of Hogan using a homophobic slur to describe the homeowner of his childhood home.
In the aftermath, WWE fired Hogan and removed any mention of him from its website. In a statement given to Polygon's Samit Sarkar, a 2K Sports representative announced the company will scrub Hogan completely from the upcoming release of WWE 2K16 in the fall.
