The Rock thought very highly of himself in the year 2000.
He went into negotiations with Vince McMahon over a new contract with high hopes. The Rock asked the WWE Chairman for a $2 million downside, double that of which “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was making at the time.
He spoke about this on the PBD podcast. The former WWE Champion asked Vince who the highest paid on the WWE roster was, then asked for double his downside.
“Between us, who is the highest paid on the roster?’ He said, ‘Stone Cold Steve Austin.’ ‘What’s his guarantee?’ ‘One million dollars.’ ‘I want two.’ ‘Two million?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Guaranteed?’ ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘I’m just curious, where do you get that from? What are you figuring in your mind.’ ‘I love Steve, I respect him. If he’s getting a million dollars. Where I see myself going is past a million dollars. I think it should be two.’ “
The Rock Learnt About The WWE’s Business Following Negotiations
Following his attempt to double Steve Austin’s guarantee, Vince McMahon had The Rock learn about the WWE’s business model.
He partnered up with a WWE Executive and learned everything about how the business operated and how much money they bring in.
“He went, ‘I understand that logic. Here’s what I want you to do. I’m going to put you in contact with one of our executives. I need you to take a couple of months to understand the business. I need you to understand this side of the business from top to bottom. All of the economics. Understand our costs, overhead, look at what’s allocated. Take the time and put in the work that you say you’re committed to, in the ring, I respect that. Now, I want you to learn the business. Once you learn this business, then come back to me and we’ll talk.’”
“What the overhead costs were, what the costs are of the venue, what the state tax is, the allocation for the wrestlers, the percentage of the gate. I didn’t take three months. It was maybe two weeks. It was baptism by fire, and I learned to absorb as much as I could about the business.”
The Rock Made $15 Million In 2000
After learning as much as he could, The Rock went back to Vince McMahon. With a clearer understanding of the financials, he accepted half of what he originally asked for.
However, Vince McMahon revealed that The Rock was set to make $15 million overall that year, due to how business was booming for the WWE.
“I went back to Vince, I thanked him and gave him a big hug. I said, ‘I understand now. I’d like to match it at a million dollars, what Steve is getting. Thank you for taking me through it.’ We had a great conversation and he said, ‘How much do you think you’re going to make this year?’ ‘My guarantee is a million. I’ve been averaging about 50% over my guarantee. So, maybe 1.5?’ He said, ‘Now that you’ve taken yourself through that and understand the business, you’re going to make $15 million.’ He did the maths and could see where it goes. ‘You’ll make $15 million.’ By the time we had 1999-2000, wrestling has a boom period.” The Rock said.
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