An old quote warns one to never meet their heroes, as it could set them up for disappointment. "WWE SmackDown" star Michin, however, begs to differ. While speaking on "Casual Conversations with The Classic," Michin recalled her rather pleasant backstage encounter with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, whom she cites as a catalyst to her long-time wrestling fandom.
"I'm very emotional surprisingly, but when I could get through the tears, I told him like you changed my life, you're the reason why I started watching wrestling in the first place," Michin said. "He was so sweet. So many people wanted to pull them left, right. They were trying to pull them everywhere, but he took the time to actually take five minutes to listen to me and give me advice. People say to not meet your heroes, but everybody that I always wanted to meet has always been super sweet and respectful. It was just like oh my gosh, I'm a bigger fan now just meeting you. It was really cool."
Johnson, as Rocky Maivia, made his WWE in-ring debut at the 1996 Survivor Series event, where he emerged as the sole survivor in an eight-man elimination tag match. Over the next few years, Johnson established himself as one of the company's top stars, as evidenced by his 2000 Men's Royal Rumble win and multiple WWE Championship reigns. Nowadays, Johnson works as a part-time performer for WWE, most recently appearing at the 2024 Bad Blood premium live event in October.
The Michin-Johnson encounter in reference may have come during Johnson's surprise return in September 2023, as Michin posted a photograph of the two on Instagram, noting that she experienced a whirlwind of emotions in meeting him that specific night.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Casual Conversations With The Classic" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
