WWE News: The Rock and Roman Reigns address nepotism allegations surrounding Hobbs & Shaw

What's the story?

In an interview with Yahoo, WWE legend The Rock and his cousin current SmackDown Superstar Roman Reigns opened up on the former's upcoming "Hobbs & Shaw" movie.

The Rock let fans in on the fact as to how Reigns was cast in Hobbs & Shaw as the former's brother, addressing the nepotism allegations that certain sections of fans and critics have been directing toward him and Reigns.

Additionally, Reigns reiterated Rock's assertion of earning the role and thanked The Rock for giving him the opportunity to showcase his acting skills, in what many consider to be one of the most highly-anticipated movies of 2019.

In case you didn't know...

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is considered to be one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, and is hailed as arguably the biggest box office attraction in Hollywood today.

On the other hand, his real-life cousin, Roman Reigns, is currently regarded as the face of the WWE, particularly since John Cena assumed a part-time performer's status in the company a few years ago.

On that note, despite Reigns being a highly-accomplished sports-entertainer in his own right, certain sections of the entertainment industry have been criticizing The Rock, claiming that Rocky granted Reigns a key role in the Hobbs & Shaw movie, primarily because they're family in real-life.

The heart of the matter

Addressing how Roman Reigns was incorporated into the movie, The Rock explained that while brainstorming about who could be cast in the role of his brother in "Hobbs & Shaw", Reigns was the first name that came to mind.

Reigns expounded upon the same and noted that it was quite a crazy process and that he even read for the role.

Moreover, Rocky emphasized that Reigns had to read for the role because they don't believe in nepotism. However, they do believe in taking care of each other, adding that Reigns had to earn the role. The Rock continued:

"There are a lot of qualities about Joe (Roman) that make him appealing to a global audience...Obviously it shows when he's able to make a transition like this, and the very first day, first take - bang! He knocked it out of the park. It was a very great feeling because then I was like, 'Mic drop, b*****s. Look at my cousin.'"

To which, Reigns responded by thanking The Rock for according him the opportunity to be a part of the highly-awaited movie:

"To be out here in Kauai, to experience this Mana, has been overwhelming in the best way, and since you (The Rock) are right here, thank you."

What's next?

The Rock, Jason Statham, Idris Elba, Vanessa Kirby, and Helen Mirren; star in "Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw", which releases worldwide on August 2nd, 2019.

Meanwhile, Roman Reigns is presently set to continue feuding against fellow Samoan wrestling stalwart Samoa Joe, in the days to come on RAW.

What are your thoughts on The Rock and Roman Reigns' statements? Sound off!