Dwayne allowed no direct contact with gorillas
Actor Dwayne Johnson, whose role in his recent adventure film, Rampage, had him playing a primatologist who shares an unshakeable bond with a rare gorilla, says he was surprised to know about the no direct contact rule for gorillas.
“The first thing I learned — and it surprised me — was that you can’t have much contact with gorillas. When we started prepping the film, I thought, well, I’ll go to the San Diego Zoo and spend time with the gorillas there. There was respect, though no direct contact,” the actor said in a statement.
Johnson researched about gorillas prior to beginning work on the film. Based on the classic 1980s video game of the same title, the film is about an extraordinarily intelligent albino silverback gorilla (performed by Jason Liles), a crocodile, and a wolf that terrorise a city. Johnson, who plays primatologist Davis Okoye, is the only one who can stop them.
However, the rule didn’t keep Johnson from preparing for the character. He used his bond with his dog, Hobbs, aka Bruce Wee, to prepare for the film.
“He’s my best friend, and we have a bond that’s special and awesome. Here we go... We sass each other... It’s the same relationship Davis has with George... Hobbs loves to grab me by my toes, which are pretty strong, so I can hold onto him with them... We really love each other,” Johnson said.
PREPARING FOR HIS ROLE AS PRIMATOLOGIST DAVIS OKOYE IN RAMPAGE, DWAYNE JOHNSON LEARNED THAT A RULE FORBIDS ANY DIRECT CONTACT WITH GORILLAS