02x12 - Let the People Decide

Episode Transcripts for the TV show "Young Rock." Aired: February 16, 2021 –; present.*
Watch/Buy Amazon


Sitcom based upon the life of professional wrestler and actor Dwayne Johnson, also known by his ring name "The Rock".
Post Reply

02x12 - Let the People Decide

Post by bunniefuu »

- Election Day 2032
has finally arrived,

and people are flocking
to the polls

to cast their vote.

Who will win the battle
for the White House

to become the 49th president
of the United States?

- I stood by Dwayne

after the "Tooth Fairy"
six-episode event series.

I'm sticking with him now.

- Taft is it, from his policies
to his nurse's shoes.

- I'm voting for the
third party, the Chrome Party.

It's time we had a sentient AI
computer in the White House.

- I was on the fence
until Dwayne

and Dr. Julien
sorted things out.

- Indeed, early exit polls
show Candidate Johnson

experiencing
a surge in popularity

after posting this photo

to his social media account
last night.

I was actually there.

I'm not in the photo,
but I was there.

By the looks of it,
the sixth grade rivals

have put to rest
the public feud

that had become a distraction

in the final days
of the campaign,

with evil Candidate Taft
using it to his advantage

to gain major ground

on the awesome
Candidate Johnson.

- Um, I don't think
you can say "evil."

- Can't say... can't say what?
Evil?

- Good job, Randall.
The camera loves you, man.

I don't know
why you ever quit acting.

- Maybe I should go back.

- You should definitely go back
to acting, Randall.

- Yeah?
- Mm-hmm, instead of this.

Yeah. Hey, how did you get
Julien to come around?

- Well, Forest Whitaker
eased our tension

with a bottle of amazing wine,
and then he asked Julien

what could be done
to end our beef.

- Forest Whitaker, the actor?
- And humanitarian.

Yes, he is involved
in all my major life decisions.

Anyways, come to find out
that Julien has a son,

and I guess the apple
doesn't fall far from the tree.

- My son doesn't believe

that I was in the sixth grade
with you.

I showed him our class photo,
and he was like,

"How do we know that's
the real Dwayne Johnson?"

It made me crazy.
- Mm.

- It's good
to question authority.

- I appreciate you,
Forest Whitaker.

- Well, I appreciate you more,
Forest,

and I think you know that.

- It's the grapes.
- Mm.

- Anyway, when you responded
to my tweets,

well, he finally believed,
but that made it worse,

'cause he was like, "Cool,
Dwayne Johnson hates my dad."

He's so hard to please,
but I love him.

- So?
- So...

- So he agreed
to squash our beef

if I helped prove to his son
that I didn't hate him.

- Hence the photo.

Win-win all around.
- Mm-hmm.

- I am just glad
that's behind us.

Our early exit polls
are tracking well.

- Hey, that's great.
- Yeah.

- I'm gonna go to the stables.
- But it's Election Day.

- Yeah,
the horses don't know that.

Come on, Randall.
- Oh.

Can I call one of them
Cimarron?

- Oh, I love it.
- Yes!

So you really are fine
not tracking the results

in real time today?
- Oh, yeah.

I mean,
I've done all I can.

At some point,
you just gotta step back

and let the people decide,
like back in Hawaii

when my parents
were riding high

after my mom's
successful wrestling event,

the Backyard Brawl-B-Q.
- Hmm.

- And my dad's match
went over big.

Matter of fact, in his mind,
the people had already decided

they wanted to see
more Soulman Rocky Johnson

as a solo performer.

So then, through my Uncle Afa,
he booked a couple of matches

in Saudi Arabia
with a new, local promoter.

- And he also had an exclusive
contract with the WWF.

- He did, which caused
a little bit of a mess

when, a few days later,

Vince McMahon himself called
with some pretty big news.

- Time to brush up
on your Arabic

'cause I'm sending you
to Saudi Arabia

to wrestle for the WWF!
- What?

- That's why I didn't have you
on the bill for WrestleMania.

I need you to help me
open up the Middle East.

It's a huge, untapped market,
Rocky.

Hey, that's great.

I mean, I didn't even know
they liked wrestling out there.

I mean, do they even
like wrestling out there?

- They love it.

The Soul Patrol will be
the kings of Riyadh.

Are you in?
- Wait.

So Vince was launching
the WWF in Saudi Arabia

at the same time Rocky
had already planned to go?

- Yes,
it's a crazy coincidence,

but Vince had been wanting

to take wrestling global
for some time.

- How did Rocky get out of it?

- Vince,
I don't know what to say...

except hell yeah!

- Fantastic!
Well, have Pat get in touch,

and set it all up,
give you all the details.

- Afa's promoters are already
putting up billboards.

They're promoting
the hell out of me.

- So you're just gonna
double-book Saudi Arabia

behind Vince's back?

It's not a good idea to bite
the hand that feeds you.

- I'll wrestle for Vince
and the other promoter.

Saudi Arabia's a big country.

I don't think
anyone will notice.

- A toast to the Brawl-B-Q,

the biggest event

in the Polynesian Pacific
Pro Wrestling history

thanks to the work
of my daughter, Ata.

Ata.

- When you're doing something
you love, it's not work.

One of the puppeteers
from "Alf" said that

in an interview
with "TV Guide."

- Ata has helped me think
about the business differently,

and I am going to make
a big announcement

at the next meeting,
something I think

you're going
to be very happy about.

- But while my dad
was double-booked,

I was taking things
to whole other level.

- Okay. Hold on.
So wait a minute.

How many girlfriends
do you have?

- Four. I gave them each shirts
from the Brawl-B-Q.

Went over huge.

- Wow.
Hey, I'm proud of you, Dewey.

So how do you get them
to share you?

- They don't know
about each other.

- Ooh.
- I ride the bus with Cam,

eat lunch with Bethany,

do morning recesses with Sarah,

and since it's
the shortest amount of time,

I do afternoon recesses
with Emily.

Emily's better
in small amounts.

- All right, students,
gather up.

Class photo.

- Bethany, I see you're wearing
the shirt I bought you.

- Notice anything unusual,
Dewey?

- No.

- That we're all wearing
the T-shirt you gave us.

- School Picture Day,
a forever memory day.

- Did you think
we wouldn't figure out

you've been dating all of us?

We're in the same class.

- You guys talk to each other
when I'm not around?

- Who else
did you give a shirt to?

- I bought this myself.

- All right,
everybody find a spot.

- So I got what I deserved,

and my mom was hoping she'd
get what she deserved too.

- Maybe my mom's finally

banning Milk Duds
from the locker room.

The guys keep slinging them
at each other,

and they're staining the rug.

- Or maybe she'll ask you

to officially join
the business.

- That is
what I'm secretly hoping.

- I know.
I know you a little bit.

- Okay, everyone.

Many of you know
I consider myself a lone wolf,

whether it's playing tennis
or running my business.

When I was in court
fighting the FBI,

I learned the value
of having a partner,

someone strong,
reliable, trustworthy.

And that's why

I'm bringing in Lars Anderson
as vice president of PPPW.

- Uh, thanks, Lia.

You guys have done good so far,

but now you got
a real professional here.

Welcome to the majors, folks.

Hey, I'm Lars. Lars.
- Nice to meet you.

I'm Charlie.
- Hi. I'm Lars.

Lars. Hi.

- What is happening?
Who is that?

- Lars Anderson.

He wrestled with Peter
in the '70s.

- When you said
you learned the value

of a strong, reliable partner,

I thought
you were talking about me.

- What? No.

I was talking about Herman,
my white lawyer.

Sometimes you need a white face
to get ahead.

Herman,
he helped me b*at the rap.

Lars is gonna help us take
the PPPW to the next level.

- I guess packing Aloha Stadium
with 60,000 fans

isn't "next level" enough.

- Babe, you proved you're
the best promoter in Hawaii.

And when you're the best,

you can't be afraid
to think big.

- Yes,
we invite Lars to go fishing,

then push him off the boat.

- What I mean is
you should start

thinking about
stepping out on your own.

- Starting my own promotion?
- Yes.

Baby, your mama don't decide
if you're successful.

The people do.

You and I are about to step

into even bigger
and better things.

So when I get back
from Saudi Arabia,

we're gonna get to work

on starting
your promotion business.

- Okay.

- So while my dad got ready
for Saudi Arabia...

- And this
is our penthouse suite.

- Vince had just arrived.

- Are there any good places
to eat

near Prince Faisal Stadium?

I'm scouting it
for a wrestling...

What the hell?

- So when Vince found out
about Rocky double-booking

in Saudi Arabia,
did he fire him?

- No, but things
were never the same after that.

Vince was really upset
that my dad made a decision

that hurt the company.
- Uh-huh.

- My dad went
from Rocky Johnson,

Tag Team champions
of the world,

to a guy who was losing
to other wrestlers.

Vince gave my dad a slow death.

- Dwayne.

We lost New York.

- I don't understand.

I thought our exit polls
showed us ahead of Taft.

- We didn't lose New York
to Taft.

It's the third party candidate,
the Chrome Party.

It's siphoning off
just enough of your votes

that Taft carried the state.

- Their ads are all over
my social media today.

Makes sense...
a sentient AI

would know
to weaponize the Internet.

- It's fine.
It's just one state.

And there's
plenty of time left.

- How can you be so calm
right now?

- When I was a teenager
in Nashville,

I learned
that you don't always get

to sit in the driver's seat
of your own life.

Sometimes other people
get to decide.

It was 1987, and I was
finally finding my groove.

- ♪ I'm a woman's man,
no time to talk ♪

♪ It's all right,
it's okay ♪

♪ I'll live
to see another day ♪

♪ We can try to understand

♪ "The New York Times'"
effect on man ♪

♪ Whether you're a mother
or whether you're a brother ♪

♪ You're staying alive,
staying alive ♪

♪ Feel the city breaking,
everybody's shaking ♪

♪ You're staying alive,
staying alive, ha! ♪



♪ Staying alive,
staying alive ♪

- Hey, hey, just picked us up
some hot chicken sandwiches,

and they are hot as...

uh, what's going on?

Did we get a new apartment?

- Sure did.

In Pennsylvania.

- Wait, what?

- Lawler took me off
the roster.

My run in Nashville's over.
- Are you serious?

After the crowds
you've been drawing?

- That's what I said,

but Jerry said it wasn't
personal, just business.

Didn't want things
to get stale,

so he's
bringing in new wrestlers.

- But your dad
called Uncle Afa,

and apparently,
there's lots of wresting work

in Bethlehem right now.

- So just like that,
we're moving?

And I don't even
get a say in it?

- It'll be great
to be around family again.

Your uncle said
he's doing so well

he bought
a new washer and dryer.

- We don't need that.

The one in the basement
is totally fine.

And I finally started
to like it here.

I just broke in my boots.

- I'm sorry, honey,
but you know

this is how it works
in our business.

- Ugh!

- Isn't that
where Jesus is from?

- No,
that's Bethlehem, the Bible.

This is
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

- Oh, that makes more sense.

Bummer.
- Hey, fellas.

Listen, the headliner's
refusing to go on tonight,

something about,
I don't know, a costume.

Do you mind helping me out
on this one?

- Me?
Can't you just handle it?

- I would,
it's just...

you know how attracted I am
to women who are mean to me.

Please? Come on.

Uh, Miss Moolah?

- Next one won't miss,
gingersnap.

You deaf or just stupid, honey?

- I grew up around
tougher women than you,

so you don't scare me.

- You Rocky Johnson's kid?

- Yeah.

- Then you ain't lying.

I know your grandmother well.

She fought the FBI and won,
didn't she?

- She told them
to k*ll themselves

on a local TV broadcast.

- Good line.

- So what's the problem?
Why are you upset?

- It's my jacket.

My jacket is in a suitcase,

and my suitcase is on a flight
to Tokyo right now

because of the knuckleheads
at Myrtle Beach Airport,

so I ain't going on.

- So that's your problem?
A jacket?

- Not just a jacket, baby.

My jacket.

Without that jacket,
the Fabulous Moolah

is just Moolah.

And I worked too hard
at becoming fabulous

to start backsliding now.

- Okay.
So it's not a real problem.

- Oh, you got real problems,
do you?

- I do, actually.

We're moving to Pennsylvania.

- Oh, you're moving?
Boo-hoo.

- Not just moving,
moving again.

I just started to like it here.

How am I supposed
to figure out where I fit

if I keep moving
every time I get comfortable?

- Baby,
nobody knows what their life

is gonna look like
when they're your age.

When I was young,
I wanted to get married,

live in the suburbs,
be the kind of woman

that bakes cookies
for the mailman.

And you know what happened?
- What?

- I got that life,
and it sucked,

so I grabbed my makeup bag,
and I ran away.

And here I am,
50 years later,

talking to you
in the ladies' locker room,

which is really
a storage closet

that smells like
dead squirrels,

and I don't regret
a second of it.


I thought my journey was over,

but, baby,
I was just getting started.

Don't just take my word for it.
Ask anybody.

- I was gonna be
Randy Poffo, yeah,

and I was gonna barrel it up
in St. Louis for the Cardinals.

Ooh, yeah!

- Andre had planned to stay
in his village in France

and become a farmer.

- Easy.
Wrestling, since baby.

- Then I blew out my shoulder.

Lost my spot on the team.

- Farming is not for Andre.

Pick the carrot,
pick the turnip.

Pick the carrot,
pick the turnip. Non.

- 1971, AAU Greco-Roman
wrestling champion.

That's it, papa.

- Then I found wrestling,

and everything made sense,
yeah.

- Andre make the decision
to leave his maman,

come to America,
become big champion.

- What?

I always want to be wrestler,
so I become wrestler.

- Busting my shoulder
was the best thing

that ever happened
to the Macho Man, baby.

- Andre has no regrets.

- See? Proof.
Camera man, zoom in.

- Life is a windy path,
princess,

but if you trust in yourself
and in your journey,

you'll get
where you need to be.

Please welcome
the Fabulous Moolah!

You go home!

Oh, boo-hoo!

- Hey, Dwayne,
ain't that your, uh...

- Suits her better.

- Whoo! Moolah!

On the way home, I thought
a lot about Moolah's words...

So you think
they got snow in Pennsylvania?

Could be cool.

And I decided
to trust the journey.

- They definitely have snow.

Uncle Afa says
he keeps a hairdryer in his car

to keep his feet warm.

- Dude's always sweating

but somehow still cold.

- Jeannie, we're ready to call
the state of Ohio

for Candidate Johnson.

He's rebounding well
after his surprise loss

in New York.

- Looks like it's gonna come
down to the wire, boss.

- You're right, just gotta
let the people decide.

- You know, all we can do

is ask for our chance
to succeed, Randall.

Reminds me
of a similar situation

when I made my debut
in the WWE.

- Was this after you wrestled
in the dark match

in Corpus Crispy?

- Did you just say
"Corpus Crispy"?

- No.
- Well, okay, yes.

After my dark match,
Vince McMahon had a vision

for me to make
my televised debut

at one of the major
pay-per-views

of the year; it was called
"Survivor Series."

So Vince wanted me to lean
in to my family legacy

with this new persona
called "Rocky Maivia,"

and I obliged with,
let's just say,

a very memorable
wrestling costume.

I was gonna come in
like a badass,

jump the top rope, and talk
smack straight to the hard cam

so all the viewers at home
could see me.

- Wait, what's a hard cam?

- That's the main TV camera
that overlooks the ring.

Wrestlers are supposed to play
all their actions toward it

because it's the eye
of the viewer at home.

Yeah, it's Rocky Maivia, baby!
I'm here!

It's the Madison Square
Garden...

Turns out the hard cam
was behind me.

I was literally talking
to nobody.

But I made up for that.

Two, three!

- Yeah, I'm Rocky Maivia, baby,
let's...

- Dwayne, hey,
nice work on the debut.

You missed the hard cam,
but real good.

You know, we're planning
a big push for you.

You're on your way to becoming
the WWF's next baby-faced star.

- I'll do whatever you say
to make that a reality.

- That's what I like to hear.
- Vince.

- Lia, how are you, beautiful?

- This was the first time my
dad and Vince saw each other

since the double-booking
incident in Saudi Arabia

that ended my dad's
WWF career.

- Vince!
- Rocky! There he is.

- That's how they greeted
each other after everything?

Warm like that?
- That's wrestling.

- You know, your kid's
really got something.

- It makes sense.

Taught the boy
everything he knows.

Lucky for us,
he never listens to me.

- You made your family
very proud tonight, Dewey.

Yesterday,
you were just my baby,

and now you're my "Survivor
Series" champion baby.

- Well,
you missed the hard cam,

but pretty good, son.

- You were like Superman,

except with a very,
very different costume.

- You know,
if Vince wants me to dress

like I just stepped out
of "The Lion King,"

then that's what I'll do.

After that night,
I hit the road hard

for the WWF.

Show after show.
Town after town.

As part of Vince's big push,

I went up against Triple H

for the Intercontinental
Title.

It was a match
I'll never forget.

Your winner

and new Intercontinental
Champion, Rocky Maivia!

- I was the champ,
and it felt incredible.

- Wait, why were they booing?

- Well, that was the beginning
of the Attitude Era.

That was when fans really
wanted more edge,

like the beer-swigging,
trash-talking heel

known as
Stone Cold Steve Austin.

And there I was on
the other end of the spectrum.

I mean, I had a bad haircut
and a big smile.

Plus it didn't help
that Vince was force-feeding me

to the people
as their new hero.

- The people were deciding.
- They were.

Over and over again.

But despite the signs
that things weren't working,

Vince kept believing in me
and kept me on the bill

for the biggest pay-per-view
of them all.

WrestleMania.

- The show your dad missed out
on because of Saudi Arabia.

- That's right.
- Come on, Dewey!

- Now, the Sultan
was one of the biggest heels

in the company, and I was one
of their biggest baby faces.

Ah!

Usually at this moment,
the crowd rallies

behind the baby face before
he makes his big comeback.

However...

Rocky sucks!
Rocky sucks!

Rocky sucks! Rocky sucks!
- Boo!

Rocky sucks!

- The crowd did
the exact opposite.

Rocky sucks!

- Was this your lowest moment
in the ring?

- Nope,
that was about to come.

- So you get to WrestleMania,
all should be well,

but the crowd hates you.

- Hates me so much.

- And that wasn't
your low point?

- As I said,
that was about to come.

Vince had another idea

about how to turn the crowd
around for Rocky Maivia.

It all had to do with legacy.

Ah!

- Your dad jumped in
to save you?

- Yup.

- Did everybody lose
their minds?

- No.

- Go, Rocky!

- Look at how heavy
his breathing is.

- But two generations
of wrestlers side by side.

How could they not be moved
by that?

- I know, and trust me,

you weren't the only one
who was surprised.

Rocky sucks!
Rocky sucks! Rocky sucks!

- I went into the ring

thinking Vince's gimmick
was gonna work,

and my future would be bright.

But instead I left
wondering if I had

any future in wrestling
at all.

The people had decided
I wasn't their guy.

Rocky sucks!
Rocky sucks!

- This isn't working.
- No, it is not.

- Did we make a mistake here?

- You mean with the dad stunt?

- No, about him.

Rocky sucks!
Rocky sucks!

- I never knew this.

I always just assumed that
once you made it to the WWF,

you were instantly a star.

- You know,
I think a lot of people assume

that once you hit a certain
level in your career,

it's all easy sailing
from there,

but they're wrong.

I mean, you could reach
for the stars

and if you're lucky
even get there,

but that doesn't mean that
it won't disappear overnight.

- Hmm. So what happened next?

How'd you turn it around?

- Oh, there was no saving
that day.

So after that, I went ahead,
and I...

- Sir, they're calling Texas.

- We're calling Texas
for Candidate Dwayne Johnson.

A huge victory for Johnson...
- Yes! Yes!

- In the south.
- Yes! Yes! Yes!

Whoo!

- But in a surprise turn,

it looks like Michigan
has officially been called

for Candidate Taft.
- No!

You were just in the lead
in Michigan.

- It's the Chrome Party.

They're still
siphoning votes away.

- It's okay, I got
a lot of faith that the people

are gonna make
the right decision.

- And in another shocker,
Florida,

seemingly a Johnson lock
according to exit polls,

has gone to Taft.

- And California
is officially projected

to go to Taft...
- Which seals it.

In a result nobody
could have seen coming,

the 49th president
of the United States

is Senator Brayden Taft.

- I lost.

But the journey is never over.
Post Reply