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SINGAPORE : Towering at 1.93m with a ripped muscular frame, former pro-wrestler turned actor Dwayne Johnson may come across as a tough-as-nails macho man, but deep down he's a big softie who spoils his six-year-old daughter with ice-cream and surprise tea parties.
"Food, that's the way to my little girl's heart, and doing all the fun things she likes to do, such as horseback riding. She loves to dance, she loves to do gymnastics," he said of his daughter Simone Alexandra whom he had with his now-divorced wife Dany.
The good-humoured and self-deprecating Johnson, in town last Friday to promote the family comedy The Game Plan, gamely fielded questions ranging from the serious (his political aspirations) to the frivolous (the size of his chest compared to his dates').
"My life is so hectic. So, it's always nice to take some time to take her to school, drop her off, take her out for dessert or ice-cream ... I love surprising my little girl. Once, I had her room completely decorated in pink and bought toys, dolls and had a tea party when she came to visit."
It's quite apt then that Johnson - formerly known as The Rock - was roped in to play bachelor Joe Kingman, an egotistical professional football player whose life goes topsy-turvy when an eight-year-old girl turns up at his doorstep claiming to be his daughter.
"It was a big deal in our household. It was daddy's first movie she could see because the rest of my other movies were a bit too 'grown up'," said the 35-year-old Johnson, whose previous films include his debut The Scorpion King (2002), The Rundown (2003) and last year's Gridiron Gang. He will be seen in another comedy, Get Smart, next.
Despite having played tough guys or villains in the past, Johnson has a particular fondness for comedy - a talent that was quite evident in his scene-stealing role as a gay bodyguard in Be Cool.
"Anytime that I could put on a tight, green, ballet one-piece (outfit) that is very thin and embarrassing - I'm all for it," he joked about one of the most memorable scenes in The Game Plan where Johnson's American football star character is seen pirouetting with the Boston Ballet Company.
"Comedies are difficult to pull off and when you find success in a comedy, it's great. When you can find success in a family comedy - when mum and dad deem you as an appropriate actor for their entire family to go watch - then that's really unique and special," he said regarding The Game Plan, which was No 1 at the US box office charts for two weeks.
Besides his acting, Johnson has also been noted for his political activism, so, when asked, he made no bones about the possibility of one day following in the illustrious footsteps of another Hollywood muscle-man, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
"Yah! You know it is fine, you know Tha Rawk got into achting ..." he breaks into the Austrian-born actor-turned-Californian Governor's often parodied heavy accent.
"But the difference is because I am (born) American, I could run for president one day," said Johnson who claims to be an "independent" despite having addressed the Republican National convention in 2000.
But turning serious, he added: "I would never say no. Possibly one day, but that's way down the road. I am friends with a lot of politicians. I've known Arnold for years."
Meanwhile, what would he do if a little girl turned up at his doorstep like in The Game Plan?
"I'd wish I could fly away ... or I'd probably faint. But seriously, if the child is really mine, I'd do what I have to do, embrace it. Do the right thing." - TODAY/ym
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