Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson surprises Aussie fans as he emerges on Sydney stage

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson thrilled fans in Sydney on Thursday when he made a special appearance to celebrate his new live-action adaptation of Disney’s Moana.

The wrestler and actor, 54, hit the blue carpet as he joined his Aussie co-star Catherine Laga’aia at the event, before putting on a surprise performance for fans inside the theatre at Sydney’s Darling Harbour.

Johnson, who plays and voices the demi god character of Maui in the hit film franchise, came out on stage performing the song You’re Welcome from the films.

It was a pleasant surprise, as fans at the event were watching a performance from musicians and a choir who were singing songs from the hit film franchise.

When the star burst out on stage, cheers erupted from the crowd.

Johnson, who years ago made his rap debut, playfully did a mic drop at the end of the performance, before saying a speech on stage ahead of a short teaser screening.

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In his speech, the star, known for films including Jumanji, The Scorpion King and Fast & Furious, said the films represents his Polynesian culture.

“This is a film that will go around the world on the biggest platform on the globe and that really means something,” he told the audience.

“We have worked together for almost a decade now bringing three iterations of Moana to the world,” he added about the previous films.

The first film came out in 2016, followed by a sequel Moana 2 in 2024, before the live-action film released this year.

Beforehand, the Hollywood megastar walked the blue carpet and posed up for pictures with Laga’aia, 19, who portrays Moana in the live-action film. It’s her big film debut.

Director Thomas Kail was also in attendance at the event.

Johnson spoke to Today’s Renee Bargh ahead of the special event and spoke about his character’s long, dark, curly hair in the film.

“That’s part of the character, his hair is part of his superpower… just like his tattoos and I had so much fun reading the memes about my hair… it was the best,” he laughed.