The Rock Labels His ‘Final Boss’ Character as the Greatest Heel in Professional Wrestling History

In episode 4 of WWE Unreal series, The Rock crowned his latest heel run as the most influential in wrestling history.

The Rock Labels His ‘Final Boss’ Character as the Greatest Heel in Professional Wrestling History

The Rock, Cody Rhodes, John Cena, Roman Reigns (via WWE)

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WWE recently dropped its latest five-episode documentary, WWE Unreal, on Netflix—an inside look at some of the most iconic moments in pro wrestling history. But the most talked-about segment came in Episode 4 titled Heel Turn. This segment spotlighted The Rock’s dramatic transformation into his “Final Boss” persona—his first true heel turn since 2003. 

Produced by Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions, the episode dived deep into the buildup to WrestleMania, offering fans a behind-the-scenes look at how Dwayne Johnson helped orchestrate two of the biggest storylines in recent memory.

One of the standout moments? Johnson’s pivotal role in John Cena’s shocking heel turn at Elimination Chamber ultimately led to Cena capturing his record-breaking 17th world title at WrestleMania 41. The episode opened with The Rock calling his new persona the greatest heel professional wrestling has seen. 

The Final Boss, the greatest heel professional wrestling has seen. Insurmountable antagonist. There’s nothing The Final Boss can’t do. There’s nothing that The Final Boss can’t say. Becoming this new version has been the most gratifying decision that I’ve ever made.

The Rock via WWE Unreal

This larger-than-life character walks a fine line between fiction and reality. Johnson cleverly uses his real-life position on the TKO board of directors to justify his in-ring actions, seamlessly blending corporate power with wrestling drama. It all began at the WrestleMania 40 Kickoff show, where The Rock and Roman Reigns appeared to confirm their long-hyped main event matchup, bonding over their Bloodline legacy. 

But Cody Rhodes had other plans. He cashed in his Royal Rumble win and declared he’d face Reigns instead, cutting into Johnson’s spotlight. Things escalated when Rhodes referenced the grandfathers of both Reigns and Johnson, suggesting they’d be ashamed of their descendants. That personal jab sparked The Rock’s heel turn, as he slapped Rhodes and set off a generational feud that soon pulled in Seth Rollins as well.

Night 1 of WrestleMania 40 saw Johnson and Reigns team up to defeat Rhodes and Rollins in a tag team showdown. But the tides turned on Night 2, when Rhodes finally dethroned Reigns, ending his epic 1,316-day title reign. But The Rock’s impact didn’t stop there. 

As mentioned earlier, he was also the driving force behind John Cena’s first heel turn in over two decades. After winning the Elimination Chamber, Cena aligned with Johnson—“selling his soul” in the process with Travis Scott in the mix—and went on to capture the WWE Championship for a historic 17th time at WrestleMania 41.

Whether one sees Johnson as an egomaniac or a master of the spotlight, none of this comes as a surprise. Either way, his take on the “Final Boss” perfectly reflects how he views his power in the world of professional wrestling.

WWE Unreal revealed a shocking alternate path pitched by The Rock for the Elimination Chamber

Another interesting revelation in Netflix’s Unreal series unfolded when former WWE writer Brian Gewirtz and The Rock’s creative aide revealed that the company had a different road for the closing segment of Elimination Chamber.

The Rock, John Cena, Cody Rhodes and Travis Scott
The Rock, John Cena, Cody Rhodes, and Travis Scott (via WWE)

When Johnson and Gewirtz first started mapping out The Final Boss’s WrestleMania season plans, they weren’t sold on the idea of a Cody Rhodes vs. John Cena title match featuring two babyfaces. At that stage, a Cena heel turn wasn’t even on the table. So instead, Gewirtz pitched an alternative direction to shake things up.

I had the idea of Cody needing to be Rock’s champion. We had that as the hook. We proposed, at Elimination Chamber, Cody turning down The Final Boss, and that was gonna lead to Final Boss making an impromptu title match right then and there, that resulted in Kevin Owens, who had been in a storyline with Cody during that time, leaving with the championship.

Brian Gewirtz via WWE Unreal

Gewirtz explained that having Kevin Owens win his second WWE title “wasn’t the end goal,” but they needed “something seismic” to give Cody Rhodes a major moment to react to on the Road to WrestleMania.

Ultimately, they chose to go with the Cena heel turn instead. And with KO dealing with a neck injury, it’s unclear if he would’ve even been able to follow through with whatever plans Johnson and Gewirtz might have had for him. 

Moreover, the bout between Cena and Rhodes was deemed underwhelming by the majority of the fans owing to Johnson’s absence and instead featuring Travis Scott as Cena’s sidekick. Fans expected The Rock to be part of that historic match that ultimately saw Cena surpass Ric Flair as the wrestler with the most world title wins in WWE history. 

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