Prepare to have tissues ready when you watch Dwayne Johnson’s latest family video. The actor is known for sharing sweet, emotional, and sometimes comedic moments with his daughters. But there was something that felt extra special about this one. He explains in the video that for his birthday weekend, they decided to take his two younger daughters to FAO Schwartz, an epic toy store in New York City. He never expected the trip to include a touching moment that reminded him of how he created a life ‘better than ours’ for his children.
The actor describes how, leading up to the trip, his ten-year-old was asking him if he ever got to go to FAO Schwartz. While he did get to visit the store once as a child, he told her that doing what they were about to do wasn’t in the cards for him. But the actor expresses the joy he gets from living vicariously through his children. These moments are just one of many things that his daughters love about him.
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It’s always lovely to see the actor talk about his children, as you can visibly see him instantly melt. Johnson has been fairly open about his personal life, from moments with his children to his childhood. He explored the latter in his comedy, Young Rock, which ran for three seasons on NBC. Who could forget the time when his youngest refused to believe he was Maui?
But watching this video, I thought about how childlike the actor was playing along with his daughters. He compared it to being like Willy Wonka showing Charlie the Chocolate Factory. Although, this trip ended without any children turning into blueberries. He describes the touching moment with his daughter:
That really filled up my heart with joy. You know when your kid has that kind of wherewithal, and I think in her little soul – her little empathetic soul – to say, ‘hey, I wish my dad could have experienced this.’ But what I experienced with her is a thousand times better than whatever I could have experienced as a kid. That’s it, right? As parents, we just live for these moments. Not a toy store moment, of course, it was amazing, but we live for the moments where we can recognize we’ve created a life for our kids that was better than ours.
The pride in those words can be felt. And I’ll be honest, it got me. You can tell Johnson means what he says. Even some of his acting choices are inspired by the representation he can bring to his daughters, such as playing Maui. His daughters seeing themselves in Moana makes it all the more important for him to keep carrying the hook. Seeing the way his daughter thought of him, after she was just given so much, is such a rewarding and wholesome moment.
The exchange can be seen at the end of the video, where she hugged him tightly and said how she wished he had had this as a child. You can tell her words threw him off guard, but the pride and emotional is all over his face, both retelling the story and in the moment. It made him reflect on the time he got to visit the toy store. He shares:
The only place at twelve that I wanted to go was FAO Schwartz and I saved up money for like three months. And I saved 30 bucks, I’ll never forget it. And my mom brought me here to FAO Schwartz and I bought a magic set ‘cause I thought ‘one day man, I’m going to be a great magician one day and make things disappear.’
Clearly, Johnson didn’t become a magician. Though who else would love to see him play one? The actor jokingly shares that “the only thing I made disappear was my hair,” and takes a moment to give his infamous fanny pack a shout-out. The rest of the video is filled with childlike wonder, even from Johnson, who steps on a floor keyboard and gets excited over a Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Funko pop. It’s nice to see that even with his busy filming schedule, he takes time to have special trips with his daughters.
Currently, Johnson is promoting the live-action Moana, which has been the subject of much discussion. While the actor has gotten a lot of flak for the unfortunate wig, I think it’s important to remember the importance of what the movie is representing, such as the Polynesian culture, female empowerment, and, according to Johnson, what real masculinity looks like.
I have no doubt that the actor will take his daughters to see the movie when it premieres July 10 in theaters.