The Scorpion King Returns!

(Courtesy of ETonline.com)

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May 12, 2001

Forget the mummy -- THE ROCK is returning to reprise his role in his very own feature, 'The Scorpion King.' ET caught up with the man on the set!

ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT: With 'The Mummy Returns,' your star is arriving. What's going to happen to your wrestling career?

THE ROCK: I think it's a question of opportunity. The WWF has really afforded me with a lot of opportunities. The vehicle of the WWF has allowed me the transition of coming into the film industry. Being in the film industry and being an action-figure actor has been a goal of mine for a long time, so as far as what's going to happen with my career in the WWF, I can honestly say that in some form or fashion, I'll always have ties to the WWF. There's nothing better than working in front of a live audience, 35,000 people. But at the same time, there's certainly a whole new audience, a whole new collection of challenges, and I'm definitely ready for it.

ET: Did they look at the rushes from the 'Mummy' and say that you could be your own star? How did this come about?

THE ROCK: What happened, I had done a lot of TV to begin with, but when I hosted "Saturday Night Live," I was able to show a little bit of depth. I was adamant about not doing any wrestling skits, and it was after that a lot of eyes were opened. When I was over in Morocco filming 'The Mummy Returns,' Universal had seen the dailies and, from what I know, it was through watching the dailies that they said let's make a movie about this and focus on the Scorpion King's life.

ET: You are the Scorpion King.

THE ROCK: That's right.

ET: So how did it feel when they came to you and said, "We want this whole movie about you"?

THE ROCK: It felt fantastic. I'm not going to lie to you. It was a fantastic feeling. When I got the news, I was on my cell phone, and I was kind of playing the cool role. Yeah, sure, that's fantastic, I really appreciate that, thank you. In the meantime, I'm really going (waves arms around). So, naturally, I'm just really excited about this. I'm extremely happy about the support that Universal has shown me, the support that the cast and crew has shown me, and they believe in me as I believe in them.

ET: Is there any connection between 'The Scorpion King' and 'The Mummy Returns'?

THE ROCK: Absolutely, the character you see in 'The Mummy Returns,' in this really elaborate prologue, you go back about 10 years, to before he actually became the Scorpion King. He was an assassin. The Scorpion King has all the elements of a classic story. It's 'Indiana Jones' and 'The Magnificent Seven,' it's a story about discovery, vengeance, love. The fighting scenes in this movie are going to be the most kick-ass fighting scenes you've ever seen. No question.

ET: How does it feel to have the hair back on? Are those extensions?

THE ROCK: No, this is actually a real wig. I wore this in 'The Mummy Returns.' And I tell you, when I put these pieces on, when I get dressed at five in the morning, putting on the chest plate and the pants, and the hair -- it roughly takes about two and a half hours -- I actually turn into the Scorpion King, 3000 BC.