Brendan Fraser didn’t must know Dwayne Johnson personally to know he’d be an ideal slot in The Mummy Returns.

The actor, who starred as fearless adventurer Rick O’Connell within the first three Mummy movies, revealed that the wrestling celebrity wasn’t on his radar till he was circling the function of the dreaded Scorpion King within the 2001 sequel. However as soon as he was, Fraser was totally on board.

“After I was instructed that you simply have been a risk for it, forgive me, however I didn’t know you from the wrestling world,” Fraser instructed Johnson on a current installment of Selection’s Actors on Actors. “And once I was proven, I mentioned, ‘That’s impressed casting. We’d be fortunate to get the man.’”

The Oscar-winning actor added that Johnson’s larger-than-life “stadium persona” from his wrestling profession was the important thing to making a “villain you like to hate” within the movie.

“It’s going to take a number of confidence and perception,” Fraser continued. “Within the wrestling world, you have been portray with a 10-inch brush — it’s good to have large vitality. And your work are getting higher on a regular basis.”

See the cast of 1999's 'The Mummy', then and now Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz looking to reunite for new 'Mummy' movie

The Mummy Returns was Johnson’s first leap from the ring to the silver display. He has spoken typically about his admiration for the movie and its forged — significantly Fraser — over the previous couple of years, however acquired an opportunity to inform it to his costar straight throughout their chat.

“I’d love to start out off our dialog by supplying you with flowers. OK? I’m going to ship a number of flowers to the doorstep proper now,” he mentioned. “You and I first linked on The Mummy Returns. That was one of many largest franchises on this planet at the moment.”

He continued, “I used to be able to make my transition into Hollywood. And there was a second the place you can have mentioned, ‘This man, Dwayne Johnson, he’s by no means acted earlier than; he’s in professional wrestling.’ The phrase I acquired again was, ‘Brendan loves the concept. He welcomed you with open arms.’”

Johnson mentioned that Fraser’s confidence in him “meant one thing to me, since you took a danger on me, and years later, you and I are sitting right here,” including, “I need to thanks for actually altering my life.”

Within the years since, Johnson has headlined a complete host of his personal action-adventure movies, together with Jungle Cruise and the Jumanji movies. He has additionally starred because the demigod Maui in Disney’s Moana movies, gotten behind the wheel within the Quick & Livid franchise, and have become a superhero in DC’s Black Adam.

Whereas they could have technically labored collectively on The Mummy Returns, Fraser beforehand revealed that he and Johnson didn’t truly meet till a reception after the movie was accomplished as a result of Johnson's arachnid villain required heavy CGI.

“We hadn't met in particular person earlier than then, truly, though we have been preventing onscreen,” he instructed Variety in 2022. “However each time I labored with him, he was only a piece of tape on a stick. So it was good to go, 'Hey, man. How are ya? We lastly meet!’”

And hey, with a fourth Mummy film in the works, perhaps there's an opportunity Fraser's Rick and Johnson's Scorpion King might cross paths as soon as once more.

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