Based on one episode, it’s too early to say if NBC’s Young Rock is worth your TV-watching devotion. But the pilot episode, which aired Tuesday night, showed some promise and gave viewers an idea of what to expect in this chronicle of Dwayne Johnson before he became a pro wrestling and global movie superstar.
The premise of the series has Johnson telling stories of his early life as he runs for President in the year 2032. Sitting down with Randall Park (WandaVision, Fresh Off the Boat), who’s gone from actor to TV news personality, The Rock looks back on his adolescent years while his father, Rocky Johnson, made a living as a pro wrestler and the family struggled financially.
Young “Dewey” (played by Adrian Groulx) idolized his father and enjoyed hanging out with a crowd that often included fellow performers like Junkyard Dog, the Iron Sheik, and Andre the Giant, each of whom we see in the pilot episode.
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Personalities from the World Wrestling Federation of the early 1980s will apparently feature prominently in Young Rock. In addition to the stars seen in the pilot episode, TheWrap reported that future episodes will include Vince McMahon and “Macho Man” Randy Savage, both of whom were recently cast.
But Johnson also takes his adoring audience back to his college years, which fans know took place at the University of Miami. The Rock was a defensive tackle for the Hurricanes from 1991 through 1995, but didn’t achieve stardom due to playing behind future stars Warren Sapp and Russell Maryland, along with knee, back, and shoulder injuries.
The “Beast of Bethlehem” (Pennsylvania) was recruited to Miami by then-defensive line coach Ed Orgeron, who made an appearance in Young Rock‘s first episode, played by Emmett Skilton.
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Skilton gets Orgeron’s gravelly growl and Cajun accent right, along with a mischievous personality. The coach saying he chews on coffee grounds to get that caffeine “straight to the blood” is totally believable. As it turns out, Orgeron’s fellow coaches remember that he really did take his coffee as straight as possible.
It might have been more fun to have Orgeron play himself and the coach probably could’ve pulled it off. (Although he may have habitually snuck a “Geaux Tigers” in there.) But since an actor (Uli Latukefu) played college-aged Dwayne Johnson, having someone else portray Orgeron was appropriate. And Skilton did a good job.
Whether or not we’ll see more of Young Coach O in future episodes of Young Rock has yet to be seen. Skilton’s IMDB page only lists him appearing in one, but maybe that’s because the others haven’t aired yet.
Viewers can catch a rerun of the Young Rock premiere episode on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC. The series is also available for streaming on Peacock, Hulu, and Google Play.
Related: ESPN broadcasters and CFB coaches do on-point impressions of LSU’s Ed Orgeron