5 things you probably forgot about The Rock

#4 The Rock was initially hated by fans

Why The Rock was initially hated by fans?

As previously mentioned, The Rock signed with WWE in 1996 and made his debut under the moniker Rocky Maivia. Despite the fact he was just a rookie and had little to no experience as a professional wrestler, Vince McMahon and the other higher-ups decided to bring him in hot and gave him a major push.

For his debut, WWE hyped fans with playing his lineage, as well as promoted him as WWE's first third-generation Superstar on TV. The Rock made his in-ring debut at Survivor Series and helped his team win a match in an underdog fashion.

While WWE was trying to build The Rock as one of the top babyfaces in the company, at the time, fans were struggling to accept his blue-chipper character. Thinking he'd become a fan-favorite, WWE made him win the Intercontinental Championship from one of the top heels at the time, Triple H.

However, this plan quickly backfired in Vince McMahon and the other higher-ups' faces, as fans hated seeing The Rock as the champion to the extent that they'd chant "Die Rocky Die" and "Rocky Sucks" during his matches.

Fortunately, the officials soon realized the Samoan Superstar wouldn't work as a good guy just yet. They repacked him as a heel character, while also making him align him with an antagonist stable, The Nation of Domination, led by Faarooq.

Years later, The Rock is one of the biggest babyfaces in WWE history.