Johnson addresses Maui fund backlash

Dwayne Johnson says he totally gets why people have criticized him and Oprah Winfrey for asking the public to donate to their Maui fund.

“When we first launched the fund, there was some backlash,” Johnson said in a video posted to his Instagram page. “I get it and I completely understand, and I could’ve been better — and next time I will be better.”

Johnson said he remembers how it feels when money is tight, commenting, “I understand money ain’t falling out of the sky and it isn’t growing on trees. And there’s a lot of people out there who’s living paycheck to paycheck, and I get it and I know what that’s like.”

Clarifying that he was only speaking for himself, he recalled being easily angered when living paycheck to paycheck. He continued: “And the last thing you want to hear when you’re living paycheck to paycheck is someone asking you for money, especially when the person asking you for money already has a lot of money.”

Johnson and Winfrey started the People’s Fund of Maui in August, days after wildfires tore through West Maui, including Lahaina. More than 100 people died in the blaze, named the deadliest fire in the United States in the last century.

The fund connects donations directly to people affected by the fires in the form of $1,200 monthly checks. To start the fund, the pair of celebrities donated $10 million each to seed the charitable foundation. For the rest, Johnson and Winfrey asked the public for help.

A flood of voices online blasted Winfrey and Johnson’s invitation for donations, with some demanding that the celebs instead fund the project by digging deeper into their pockets or rallying wealthy friends.