WWE fans adamant they’ve solved six-month mystery with insane spot as The Rock hits back at storyline criticism
It may have taken six months, but wrestling fans think they’ve finally cracked the mystery of The Rock’s random Bad Blood appearance.
The People’s Champ had been long removed from WWE screens when he finally popped up again at the climax of the October 2024 spectacle.
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That came a further six months or so after he’d featured so heavily at and in the build-up to last year’s WrestleMania XL in Philadelphia.
Fans in Atlanta, Georgia were sent wild by Rock’s return but were then left baffled after the veteran appeared to say and do very little before the show ended.
Staring menacingly towards the ring and Roman Reigns, the grappling legend turned movie star made a slash gesture across his throat before holding up three fingers.
Rock then vanished from WWE once again, as quickly as he’d appeared, showing up again in the New Year, completely out of character, for the company’s high-profile launch on Netflix.
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Making no reference to the Bad Blood cameo, he joked with fans before applauding Reigns, rival Cody Rhodes and pretty much everybody else before departing again.
In recent weeks he’s appeared once more, fully immersed as The Final Boss once again, urging Rhodes to give him his ‘soul’ ahead of Elimination Chamber last weekend.
All told, many have felt utterly confused as to just what on earth Rock is doing, well established as he is in his ability to show up at WWE shows in short notice and force hurried change of plans.
Talk that this might all be one muddled mess might just be wide of the mark, though, thanks to super sleuths online who now feel they’ve finally nailed what all this means.
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The background to The Rock’s latest storyline – which involved a thrilling and brilliantly executed heel turn for John Cena at the Chamber – is, they feel, tied to one of two men.
Some feel it was always about Cena. The WWE superhero, who is in the midst of a retirement tour in 2025, is renowned for his celebratory gesture of holding three fingers in the air to celebrate with fans.
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Johnson’s gesture at Bad Blood was simply foreshadowing Cena’s dastardly turncoat moment that saw him attack Rhodes, six months before it happened.
“That's what this was the entire time,” said one fan, noting the likeness between the gestures. Another added: “Omg it actually is I didn’t even think about that.”
Some have taken the theory even further, noting that along with the throat gesture, Rock also held up two fingers.
Following on from the three fingers at Bad Blood, fans feel there remains one left – and that Rock will recruit one more figure to help in his crusade to take down Rhodes.
The ‘third man’ theories spread across social media, with fans calling out Logan Paul, Seth Rollins, CM Punk and even Triple H as storyline figures who will align with The Great One.
One thing’s for sure, it seems – this has all been brewing for some time.
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Clapping back at criticism of the initial Bad Blood appearance, Rock himself said at the Elimination Chamber .
“There was a lot of criticism, like: ‘Oh, it didn’t mean anything.’ Well, it did. It’s okay. It’s okay if you’re not thinking about it now.
"But just trust me when I tell you, we are thinking about this stuff and long-gaming this, and I love that..”
Just whether Rock does recruit another figure on screen or whether his recruitment of Cena has simply been a six-month game all along remains to be seen but.
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With WWE now fully on the road to WrestleMania, there will surely be more twists and turns to come.
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