CLOSED MOUTHS DON’T GET FED Ft. Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson | Episode 228

https://www.youtube.com/@thecommentsectionwithdrew?sub_confirmation=1 The day has finally arrived, team… THE ROCK IS HERE!! Live from the beaches of Oahu, Drew sits down with Dwayne to talk about Moana (and confront him on why she wasn’t cast as the coconut farmer), getting upstaged by Jason Momoa on the red carpet, speaking an Oscar win into existence, highlighting Polynesian culture in mainstream media, and so much more. Follow The Rock: https://www.tiktok.com/@therock on TikTok https://www.instagram.com/therock on Instagran Follow Drew: https://www.tiktok.com/@drewafualo on TikTok https://www.instagram.com/drewafualo on Instagram Follow the show: https://www.tiktok.com/@thecommentsection on TikTok https://www.instagram.com/thecommentsection/ on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Drew Afualo?

  Hey y'all, it's me. Before we get into this week's episode, I want to preface this. This is one of the biggest ones we've ever done. We did do it on the beach. Woo, on the beach. However, that being said, the audio, not the best. Okay, so if you're an audio exclusive listener, I highly suggest you go watch it on YouTube. If you're watching it on YouTube, ignore me. But if not, and you're listening to audio only, I would suggest going and watching. Otherwise, you will hear wind and waves because we're on the beach. And instead of sending me comments like, "Why does this audio sound like this?" Now you know, okay? But other than that, enjoy me harassing my brother The Rock, and I'll see you next week. Okay, love you, bye.

• 0:44Drew Afualo?

  Should I start lying about my height when I go for rolls? And you're a big man, just like I'm a big man. So do you have to lie in your slates? Or is that just kind of a me thing?

• 0:55Speaker 01

  I wouldn't do that. No, no.

• 0:57Drew Afualo?

  You don't think so?

• 0:57Speaker 01

  No, because eventually they'll see. That, oh, she's kind of tall.

• 1:11Drew Afualo?

  Hey, everyone, and welcome back to another very, very special episode of the comment section. Guys, you are not gonna fucking believe who we have today. We have the one, the only, the iconic, the legend himself, my brother in Christ, Dwayne The Rock Johnson.

• 1:25Speaker 01

  My sis.

• 1:28Drew Afualo?

  Good to see you, brother.

• 1:29Speaker 01

  Good to see you. This has been a long time coming.

• 1:31Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my gosh, hasn't it? We've been two passing ships. Equally as successful.

• 1:36Speaker 01

  Here we are, for sure. Yes, I'm so happy. We came back home, essentially.

• 1:41Drew Afualo?

  We did, yeah.

• 1:42Speaker 01

  For both of us here.

• 1:42Drew Afualo?

  We did.

• 1:43Speaker 01

  By the way, I do want to start out, thank you, by the way. So I reached out to Drew. And I'm rarely a DM dude.

• 1:50Drew Afualo?

  That's true.

• 1:50Speaker 01

  But I DM'd, I was like, "Hey, what do you think? Let's do your podcast. Let's do it right."

• 1:55Drew Afualo?

  Yes.

• 1:55Speaker 01

  And then we were trying to get it done in LA, where you have your podcast. And I said, "I'm so busy. Dude, what if we went to Hawaii?"

• 2:05Drew Afualo?

  Don't threaten me with a good time, you know what I mean?

• 2:07Speaker 01

  Thank you for doing this.

• 2:08Drew Afualo?

  Oh my gosh, thank you for having me. I think so. We have the mana coursing through our veins.

• 2:13Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 2:14Drew Afualo?

  And then we get to talk about Moana.

• 2:15Speaker 01

  Come on.

• 2:16Drew Afualo?

  How exciting, live action, I will say. Well, before we get started really, can you look in the camera and tell everyone you are my friend? I've been saying you're my friend for years.

• 2:25Speaker 01

  Who the fuck has doubted that?

• 2:26Drew Afualo?

  That's what I'm saying. That's what I'm saying, because some people don't believe me. But that's why I'm saying, my good friend Dwayne The Rock Johnson's gonna tell you himself.

• 2:32Speaker 01

  Good friend. She's my good friend. She's my sister.

• 2:34Drew Afualo?

  Exactly. Jot it down. Okay. So I did get the pleasure of seeing Moana already. I got to see the new film that you will all get to see very, very soon.

• 2:43Speaker 01

  What do you think?

• 2:44Drew Afualo?

  I LOLing, LMAOing the entire time. You know what? You have hair in that movie, but you are still damn charming.

• 2:52Speaker 01

  Come on.

• 2:53Drew Afualo?

  You are so charming, brother. I can't get over it. I was giggling. You had me giggling the whole time.

• 2:58Speaker 01

  Good. I wanted to bring the comedy. That was important. Because that's what Maui is. Maui is, he's a trickster and he's all these things. He's got bravado and all of this.

• 3:05Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 3:06Speaker 01

  And especially live action version. The animated is funny, but I also felt like, well, wait, this is real flesh and blood?

• 3:12Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 3:13Speaker 01

  We can go a little harder with the jokes.

• 3:15Drew Afualo?

  I think so. A little slapstick comedy. You're real good at that.

• 3:19Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 3:19Drew Afualo?

  I'm trying to be like you, brother.

• 3:20Speaker 01

  Come on.

• 3:21Drew Afualo?

  I'm trying to be like you. I'm trying to be a comedy genius like Dwayne The Rock Johnson. But also, I did want to say, one of my favorite parts of the film is obviously all of the representation that we see. I have never seen so many Samoan Tongan people in my entire life, all in one space.

• 3:38Speaker 01

  Maori, we had everyone.

• 3:39Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, just everyone of all different Pacific Island descent. So beautiful, so crazy. How did it feel getting to kind of put that together? Like, how, how did that feel for you personally?

• 3:49Speaker 01

  You know, it felt amazing. And I'm so happy that you said that because I feel like my job and your job, if you, and our job, I think as Polynesian people, if you have big influence or growing influence, whatever it is, our job is to put it on for our culture.

• 4:06Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 4:06Speaker 01

  And in this case, for Moana, we have the biggest platform in the world, which is the silver screen at this level. And to be able to put on for culture and... And and take it so deeply serious as we all did.

• 4:29Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 4:29Speaker 01

  We have a culture trust from Tiana Nunnasina, Kayla Tha Malangi. We had just so many who understood the assignment.

• 4:39Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 4:39Speaker 01

  And here we go. And it was so cool because, look, when we were here, I grew up here, went to school here, elementary, middle, high school. You went to UH here.

• 4:48Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 4:49Speaker 01

  I, back then, I was skipping school and I was being like a little asshole, not going to class. And I would, we would go skip school and just go to movie theaters down in Waikiki.

• 4:59Drew Afualo?

  Mm hmm.

• 4:59Speaker 01

  But I wasn't seeing myself on screen.

• 5:01Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 5:02Speaker 01

  But now, years later, there we are in this big way. And our film starts off in our village. Um, and then we set sail and then along the way you meet Maui and then there's a giant crab who's singing. And then you go face the lava monster at the end. It's just, I, to answer your question directly, it made me feel so proud that I could end this way, uh, represent our culture and put us up there on the big screen.

• 5:28Drew Afualo?

  Absolutely. It was beautiful. Brings me to tears every time I see it, especially seeing the Taupo outfit, like them being dressed like culturally accurately.

• 5:37Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 5:38Drew Afualo?

  Misty eyed, as I'm giggling. And speaking of giggling, I did complain on TikTok. This is public record. I did complain on TikTok about not getting a read for this movie. That is the truth.

• 5:50Speaker 01

  Did you reach out?

• 5:51Drew Afualo?

  Well, no, I made a TikTok basically saying, hey, how come no one called me? The rock's already in it.

• 5:55Speaker 01

  Did you reach out?

• 5:56Drew Afualo?

  Okay, yeah, well, well, no, but I just kind of figured me existing was kind of just speaking for itself. But you know, that was me. Closed mouths don't get fed. So that's on me. So that was me putting my energy out into the universe. I did get two reads for, I think it was Angry Coconut Farmer and Fisherman Number Three. Me bitching on the internet literally got me those two background roles. No, I didn't hit you up. Yeah, I'm trying to be cool. I'm trying to play it cool, Dwayne. I'm trying to play it cool.

• 6:22Speaker 01

  Yes, I know, I get that.

• 6:22Drew Afualo?

  I've been telling everyone we're friends. I'm like, I gotta be cool.

• 6:24Speaker 01

  You gotta go after it sometimes.

• 6:25Drew Afualo?

  That's true. Again, closed mouths don't get fed. Again, that's on me. Obviously, that's on me. I take that. However, I did do the read and I gave it my all.

• 6:33Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 6:34Drew Afualo?

  And I guess my next question is, how come you guys didn't pick me?

• 6:37Speaker 01

  Well, first of all, I didn't know. That's number one. Because, look, I, I, you know.

• 6:43Drew Afualo?

  That's fair.

• 6:44Speaker 01

  I don't believe in nepotism, but I believe in taking care of our own. I don't know what the difference is, but I'll tell you that had I known.

• 6:50Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 6:51Speaker 01

  It would have been a different story.

• 6:52Drew Afualo?

  Nepotism was at play here. I would trust and believe I'd be telling people you were my dad.

• 6:56Speaker 01

  Come on.

• 6:56Drew Afualo?

  You call me sis, but you are significantly older than me, Dwayne.

• 6:59Speaker 01

  My dad, why don't you go uncle?

• 7:01Drew Afualo?

  Well, dad, well, you're about the same age as my dad.

• 7:02Speaker 01

  Jesus.

• 7:03Drew Afualo?

  Transparently.

• 7:04Speaker 01

  He's thirty seven?

• 7:08Drew Afualo?

  You are thirty seven. That would make you seven years older than me. Yeah, we're about the same age then. Yeah, I'm thirty.

• 7:13Speaker 01

  Jesus Christ.

• 7:14Drew Afualo?

  Yes, I am.

• 7:16Speaker 01

  I'm a hundred and eight.

• 7:19Drew Afualo?

  And TikTok years, I'm about seventy five.

• 7:21Speaker 01

  Do you love what you're doing on TikTok?

• 7:25Drew Afualo?

  I do love what I'm doing on TikTok, I think. I think like what I think.

• 7:28Speaker 01

  You hesitated a little bit there. Tell me about it, though. The reason why I ask is because you have grown since we first met.

• 7:34Drew Afualo?

  That's true, yes.

• 7:35Speaker 01

  And met on the set, which that's another story I want to tell in a second, of the set of Black Adam. That was years ago, two, three years ago, I think.

• 7:41Drew Afualo?

  Yes.

• 7:43Speaker 01

  And you have done so well, and you've amassed this incredible following.

• 7:46Drew Afualo?

  Thank you.

• 7:47Speaker 01

  Do you love what you do?

• 7:48Drew Afualo?

  I do. I love parts of what I do, which is what I think is like you.

• 7:52Speaker 01

  Tell me what you love, and then, but I want to hear maybe more importantly, what you don't. Being such an influencer.

• 7:58Drew Afualo?

  Dwayne The Rock Johnson therapizing me.

• 7:59Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 8:00Drew Afualo?

  In our motherland, something very spiritual about that. Um, I would say.

• 8:05Speaker 01

  Bring the tequila.

• 8:06Drew Afualo?

  Right, and let's get comfy. I, I think what I love most about it is the impact it's had, both like in what I do, talking about misogyny, like unpacking white supremacy, that kind of thing, especially for women and other marginalized people. And I also love the cultural aspect, like you said. I'm like yourself, a lot of people's first exposure to someone, people, like they've never seen or heard anyone who looks or sounds like us, or talks like us and was raised like us.

• 8:35Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 8:35Drew Afualo?

  So that's also something I take a lot of pride in. I really, really love, like dearly about my job. What I don't love, and I'm sure you can agree with this in a lot of ways.

• 8:43Speaker 01

  Tell me.

• 8:45Drew Afualo?

  The invasion of privacy.

• 8:46Speaker 01

  Hmm.

• 8:46Drew Afualo?

  The kind of like self sacrificial thing you have to like, you really do have to let something go in order to do this, which I'm sure you know, because you've done it at such a high level.

• 8:54Speaker 01

  In order to receive, you must.

• 8:56Drew Afualo?

  You must give, yeah, you have to, you have to give some, there's a piece of you that you have to give away, which I did not think about before doing it. It kind of just happened to me, and I think that's why. Which I was gonna ask you, what's something you missed doing? Before, before you became The Rock?

• 9:10Speaker 01

  Totally, it can, it, it, it connects to what you're saying. And, and I want to get back to what you're saying, I think it's, it's important because today, social media with our younger generation, but especially young girls.

• 9:21Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 9:21Speaker 01

  And I have all daughters.

• 9:22Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 9:23Speaker 01

  And so very careful in particular with what they're watching and what they're absorbing. So with what you do to combat misogyny, supremacy, et cetera, things like that. And, and how you speak out, I think is so important. And especially to my daughters, who they look and they see you and like, oh, I see myself in her. Like, that, that looks like she could be Auntie.

• 9:42Drew Afualo?

  Right, right.

• 9:44Speaker 01

  Um, but the thing that I, the thing I miss is, is just being able to take a walk.

• 9:51Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 9:52Speaker 01

  And whether I have a hat on, I say, just, but by the way, I'm not complaining, I do miss it though.

• 9:58Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 9:59Speaker 01

  But I also remember a time where we were here in Hawaii and we struggled, struggled to pay the rent. The rent was a hundred and eighty bucks a week, I'll never forget it.

• 10:08Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 10:08Speaker 01

  On the other side of town and, um, on the Alamoana side of town. And then, um, and then we got evicted. And I feel like all that led, we got booted off the island, we had no place to live. But all that led to who I am today.

• 10:26Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 10:26Speaker 01

  So anytime I get a little like, hmm, I wish I could take a walk.

• 10:31Drew Afualo?

  Me too.

• 10:31Speaker 01

  I'm like.

• 10:32Drew Afualo?

  You think about that.

• 10:33Speaker 01

  Hey dude.

• 10:34Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 10:34Speaker 01

  You could go back to that shit, you know?

• 10:36Drew Afualo?

  Absolutely.

• 10:36Speaker 01

  Where no one knew you.

• 10:37Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 10:38Speaker 01

  And so now you're gonna complain that you can't walk, but I do miss that. I miss walks, I miss just like hanging out.

• 10:43Drew Afualo?

  Existing outside.

• 10:44Speaker 01

  Yeah, because when I roll up to this hotel that we're at.

• 10:47Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 10:48Speaker 01

  I go through the back. It's back entrance. I don't enjoy the lobby, you know, it's that kind of stuff.

• 10:53Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 10:53Speaker 01

  Is that what you kind of miss too?

• 10:54Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, and I'm on, you know, a one one hundredth scale compared to yours. Which is kind of what I think I was struggling with. Cause I was like, I'm at such a small level. And I'm already kind of struggling with this sacrifice.

• 11:07Speaker 01

  May I jump in and say this though? I think it's important, but you were maybe your interpretation of, because it's all relative. Cause your fame, just as an influencer, and I feel like your fans and people who follow you. I feel like they have this, it's almost like just sharper. Like they're quick to have their knives out.

• 11:29Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 11:29Speaker 01

  More.

• 11:29Drew Afualo?

  Very true, yeah.

• 11:30Speaker 01

  Right?

• 11:31Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, totally.

• 11:31Speaker 01

  And I feel like there's like this empowerment that they feel like they have to.

• 11:35Drew Afualo?

  That's like a righteousness.

• 11:36Speaker 01

  To talk shit back to you, right? So I wonder like, how do you handle, how do you handle that? Because for me, I do my ninety nine percent of the noise and the shit talk. It's a slide off my back.

• 11:50Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 11:50Speaker 01

  Come on, that doesn't bother me. But then that one percent, and I'm like, oh, yeah? And I look around like, hey. You wanna DM? Like, yeah, you wanna meet me somewhere?

• 12:01Drew Afualo?

  Right, for real.

• 12:02Speaker 01

  Cause you're gonna tell me this in my face?

• 12:03Drew Afualo?

  Right, right.

• 12:03Speaker 01

  Like, how do you deal with that?

• 12:06Drew Afualo?

  I don't know, I think, I think, I get that question a lot, especially from people of like, that went up a more traditional way. I think because it's a new intersection that you guys haven't experienced yet. Like you've been in Hollywood for so long and doing it at such a high level. And now this is kind of like, almost complicated it even further, the world of fame and celebrity.

• 12:26Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 12:26Drew Afualo?

  And so, a lot of people that, like yourself, ask me like, how do you deal with that? Because that's all I know, is the internet, like going up through the internet.

• 12:33Speaker 01

  Right.

• 12:34Drew Afualo?

  So, I feel like part of it, I have to like really release, like we were talking about, like let go of what I cannot control. Cause I have a big control issue.

• 12:43Speaker 01

  Oh, really?

• 12:44Drew Afualo?

  And I think also too, if it didn't bother me, my therapist told me this, shout out to my therapist. She told me, it didn't, it didn't bother, if it didn't bother me, that would make me not a good person. If it, and she said, I hope you never get to a point. It doesn't bother you.

• 12:59Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 12:59Drew Afualo?

  It should bother you because it's not true. And also it's mean spirited and it's a lot of times bigoted in a lot of ways.

• 13:06Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 13:07Drew Afualo?

  But it's also untrue. Most importantly, it's untrue.

• 13:09Speaker 01

  True.

• 13:09Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, and it's like, I think that's what's really helped me start to cope with it on that level. Other than like the other side of like the part you're talking about where you don't care at all. That's like when I antagonize awful men, I never fucking care. What hornets nest I kick because I'm like, I'm I'm have fun doing that.

• 13:26Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 13:27Drew Afualo?

  But I know what you mean about that little tiny percent. You're like, that really upsets me.

• 13:31Speaker 01

  Because it's not true.

• 13:32Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, it's not true.

• 13:33Speaker 01

  And the tricky thing is, it's like. You want to respond because that's our human nature and be like, hey, man, that's not true. Like what you're saying is bullshit.

• 13:42Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 13:43Speaker 01

  But at the same time, there's that quote with the fastest way to kill something is not feed it.

• 13:47Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 13:48Speaker 01

  And then.

• 13:48Drew Afualo?

  It's a balance.

• 13:49Speaker 01

  You don't want to say something.

• 13:50Drew Afualo?

  Absolutely.

• 13:51Speaker 01

  You know what I mean?

• 13:52Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 13:52Speaker 01

  But I always wondered that about someone, you in particular, who you have this platform. And like you were saying, like, if they're bad men, you go after it. You don't care about the hornets nest.

• 14:01Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 14:02Speaker 01

  But at the same time, the the reverb of that is going to come back.

• 14:05Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, it always comes back, doesn't it?

• 14:07Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 14:07Drew Afualo?

  That's what I think. That's the part of the price we have to pay now.

• 14:10Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 14:10Drew Afualo?

  Being as equally famous as each other.

• 14:12Speaker 01

  Equally famous.

• 14:13Drew Afualo?

  Equally famous.

• 14:14Speaker 01

  Why are you guys laughing?

• 14:15Drew Afualo?

  Same net worth and everything.

• 14:17Speaker 01

  Are you laughing?

• 14:18Drew Afualo?

  Right, for real. What's so funny about that?

• 14:22Speaker 01

  Jesus, I do want to say this thing about control because it's important. And I have learned this too over the past, especially maybe the past couple of years. It's good for, I think, our our listeners and and people who are watching this is. This idea, tell me what you think that. You can't control how the world hugs you, hits you, comes at you, loves you, hates you.

• 14:44Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 14:44Speaker 01

  But you control how you respond.

• 14:46Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 14:47Speaker 01

  Right? And that's the thing.

• 14:48Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 14:48Speaker 01

  I feel like I've learned. Because like you, I'm gonna try and control, I'm gonna try and control everything.

• 14:55Drew Afualo?

  Right, need to, have to.

• 14:57Speaker 01

  I'm gonna try to, but then you realize, the moment you release.

• 15:01Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 15:02Speaker 01

  Is when all that, kind of almost like anxiety and pressure goes away, because then you realize, oh, yeah, I can't control what somebody says, or what they feel, or what they think, or Mother Nature, or anything I can allow. I respond.

• 15:15Drew Afualo?

  Right, and you can actually, when you actually start believing that, I think that's what, that was my biggest struggle, was actually believing that.

• 15:20Speaker 01

  As opposed to saying it.

• 15:21Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, as opposed to just saying it and not walking in it for real. Being like, yeah, whatever, who cares, yeah, not me, don't care. Yeah, but I have to fake it till I make it, so.

• 15:30Speaker 01

  That's what we do.

• 15:31Drew Afualo?

  That's what we're doing.

• 15:32Speaker 01

  That's what we do. What's, what's next?

• 15:34Drew Afualo?

  For me?

• 15:35Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 15:36Drew Afualo?

  Oh my god, that's a great segue, because what's next for me, I'm getting into acting.

• 15:40Speaker 01

  Are you?

• 15:40Drew Afualo?

  Yes.

• 15:41Speaker 01

  Great.

• 15:41Drew Afualo?

  And this is me growing an nepotism tree actively. You have to watch it live.

• 15:46Speaker 01

  There's the seeds.

• 15:47Drew Afualo?

  Well, I would love, I, I do want to say this, like, for real, Zeez, you are so influential to me in so many ways. And I'm not gonna get emotional, I'm not, but you are so influential to me in so many ways. Thank you, thank you, Dwayne The Rock Johnson, thank you. But I do think, I admire you greatly for, because being the first is fucking hard. It's really hard being the first, and like, I feel like the first in other ways, minute ways, compared to like, the longevity of your career so far. But like, it's really fucking hard being the first, and I think that you have weathered as much amazing, wonderful things that you deserve, as terrible, as, as much as terrible things that you did not deserve.

• 16:31Drew Afualo?

  And I just want to commend you for continuing to go, because it's kept the door open for people like me. And so, I'm not gonna get emotional, I'm not. Give me one second.

• 16:44Speaker 01

  Take a moment.

• 16:46Drew Afualo?

  I just wanna thank you. Like genuinely, I really wanna thank you because watching you on screen is the closest I've gotten to representation. For a very long time, it was just you.

• 16:58Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 16:58Drew Afualo?

  And now that you're not only doing, you know, wonderful things like Moana, right? And like championing like our people through these pieces of art. You're also doing things like the smashing machine.

• 17:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 17:08Drew Afualo?

  Which is just incredible. Oh, my God, the way I was working. I was doing PR for that movie.

• 17:13Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 17:14Drew Afualo?

  Unintentionally, but I did love it.

• 17:16Speaker 01

  Thank you so much.

• 17:17Drew Afualo?

  And I wanted everyone to see you in it because it meant a lot to me. And I think it's like so powerful to see how you continue to go and rise because it's really hard to transcend audiences when you look like us. And so I think it's something that really means a lot to me. So getting to do this here with you means a lot to me.

• 17:35Speaker 01

  Thank you so much. I love that. Thank you for saying that.

• 17:39Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 17:39Speaker 01

  It means, it means, it means, it means everything to me that you would say that. Because as you know, being the first is hard.

• 17:48Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 17:49Speaker 01

  That's okay. Uh, that's in my cards.

• 17:52Drew Afualo?

  Mm-hmm.

• 17:52Speaker 01

  But again, how I respond to it, that's up to me.

• 17:56Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 17:57Speaker 01

  So I love everything you said and I feel like, um, we're, we are blessed and we're in this position. And I thank you for recognizing that and acknowledging that.

• 18:49Speaker 01

  I don't look for it. I stop hoping for it. But when I hear it, it means everything to me. Yeah, thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, sis. Thank you, that's beautiful.

• 19:02Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, of course.

• 19:03Speaker 01

  That's beautiful.

• 19:03Drew Afualo?

  I think you're truly transcendent and I'll get us back on the silly track. I have a question for, should I start lying about my height? When I go for roles? I'm noticing that me being big is somehow playing, is playing against me. And you're a big man, just like I'm a big man. So do you have to lie in your, do you have to lie in your slates? Or is that just kind of a me thing?

• 19:26Speaker 01

  I, I wouldn't, I wouldn't do that. No, no.

• 19:28Drew Afualo?

  You don't think so?

• 19:29Speaker 01

  No, because eventually they'll see that, oh, she's kind of tall.

• 19:35Drew Afualo?

  You're enormous, like they're gonna see you big, your big ass walk through the door.

• 19:37Speaker 01

  She's kind of tall. I think.

• 19:43Drew Afualo?

  Oh, you meant big. Oh, okay.

• 19:45Speaker 01

  No, no. I think you look amazing and that's just not me like, hey, you look amazing. You know, I mean, and I would, I think the faster you, like you said earlier, the faster you walk through that and you own it, the better.

• 19:58Drew Afualo?

  That's true.

• 19:59Speaker 01

  Yeah, like you are, okay, and I'm gonna tell you a story. When I first got to Hollywood, I came as The Rock.

• 20:04Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 20:04Speaker 01

  Wrestler and people were like, oh, you're the wrestler, right there. Those days.

• 20:10Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 20:11Speaker 01

  Man.

• 20:11Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 20:11Speaker 01

  Plucked eyebrows and all.

• 20:12Drew Afualo?

  I had, I had to wear the shirt, obviously.

• 20:15Speaker 01

  Thank you so much for that. Appreciate that.

• 20:19Speaker 01

  So you see, I can't look too long though. That's the thing. It's like, yeah, no, I see it. I've learned.

• 20:24Drew Afualo?

  Put her away.

• 20:25Speaker 01

  I've learned. Yeah, wow, yeah.

• 20:29Drew Afualo?

  So when you first came to Hollywood?

• 20:30Speaker 01

  When I first came to Hollywood, I came as The Rock and not Dwayne Johnson, but a wrestler. And it's funny, I was told back then, like, yeah, oh, you're gonna make the Scorpion King and you might have a career. That's cool. But I, they said, what do you want to do? My inner team at that time, I said, I want to make it. I want to make it as an actor and I don't know the difference between, like, I want to have longevity and I want to have a career.

• 20:56Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 20:56Speaker 01

  And I was told, okay, here's the thing. Stop going to the gym, stop calling yourself The Rock, stop talking about wrestling. You look how you look, nobody looks like you, the biggest stars in the world at that time, George Clooney, Will Smith, Johnny Depp, you don't look anything like them, you're too big. And maybe go on a diet, like all this shit.

• 21:18Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 21:19Speaker 01

  That I didn't know that I. If you don't know any better, and if you don't have anyone telling you, no, baby, you're good.

• 21:28Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 21:29Speaker 01

  Like how you are.

• 21:30Drew Afualo?

  For real.

• 21:30Speaker 01

  That's it. And I didn't have anybody like that.

• 21:32Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 21:33Speaker 01

  I, and I bought into that.

• 21:35Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 21:35Speaker 01

  And I lost weight.

• 21:36Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 21:36Speaker 01

  And the reason why I'm telling you this is because I wish I had somebody back then to tell me, no, no, no. You are who you are, you came from this world of wrestling, doesn't matter if nobody likes it or understands it. And you, your size is your size.

• 21:49Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 21:50Speaker 01

  Go to the gym, do the things you love, eat the food you love. So anyway, that's what I would recommend.

• 21:54Drew Afualo?

  Thank you. Well, I appreciate that.

• 21:56Speaker 01

  Do you really want to act?

• 21:57Drew Afualo?

  Yes, I would love to.

• 21:58Speaker 01

  Oh, beautiful.

• 21:58Drew Afualo?

  I do have an acting coach.

• 22:00Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 22:00Drew Afualo?

  I have done quite a few auditions, no call packs yet, including this movie, but that's okay.

• 22:06Speaker 01

  Cause I didn't know.

• 22:08Drew Afualo?

  Listen, water under the bridge.

• 22:09Speaker 01

  I did not know.

• 22:10Drew Afualo?

  Cause now he's here.

• 22:11Speaker 01

  Now he's here.

• 22:12Drew Afualo?

  I forgive you, Disney. Just kidding, I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Anyways.

• 22:16Speaker 01

  They'll see this.

• 22:17Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, they will see this, it's okay. But um, yes, I do really want to act, I'm very excited about it.

• 22:22Speaker 01

  Oh, great, I'm excited for you.

• 22:24Drew Afualo?

  Thank you.

• 22:24Speaker 01

  Oh, fantastic.

• 22:25Drew Afualo?

  And, and then like my backup plan is to just kind of be like, maybe a fill in for you. Like if you're, if you're booked, like if they're like, oh, we would love the Rock. And I'm like, well, we're built similarly. Yeah, yeah. I think, I mean, from topless from behind, you probably can't tell the difference to the two of us, if I'm being honest. Hey, I have great, I have great lats too, I know he has great lats, so do I.

• 22:49Speaker 01

  Great lats.

• 22:50Drew Afualo?

  And delts.

• 22:51Speaker 01

  Glad lats.

• 22:51Drew Afualo?

  Block it, jot that down.

• 22:53Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 22:53Drew Afualo?

  I, but do you have any other tips for me as an, as an aspiring actor?

• 22:58Speaker 01

  I do. I think that you should utilize a platform you have and you should share, which I'm sure you already have, so forgive the redundancy with your following and your fans who follow you and who ride with you. I think that's important because having this kind of following and platform that you have, it matters.

• 23:17Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, that's true.

• 23:18Speaker 01

  So there's a lot of folks maybe in Hollywood who go, oh, it doesn't matter. Oh, it matters.

• 23:23Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 23:24Speaker 01

  It matters and it matters a lot. So the reason why I say that is let them go on the journey with you.

• 23:29Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 23:30Speaker 01

  And the ups and the downs and all of that. And I would also recommend keep working with your acting coach and keep at it.

• 23:37Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 23:37Speaker 01

  Yes, because all the things I think that you think, oh, maybe I shouldn't, maybe I'm too tall, maybe I should adjust my height.

• 23:46Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 23:47Speaker 01

  Maybe I'm not like the right look for this thing or whatever it is. It's actually in your favor because like me, when I first got to Hollywood, being the first, no one looked like me.

• 23:57Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 23:57Speaker 01

  There was no blueprint for a dude running around trying to write like that dude.

• 24:01Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 24:02Speaker 01

  There was no, there was no blueprint. So same thing with you. Like you just automatically stand out anyway.

• 24:08Drew Afualo?

  You're playing all the racially ambiguous roles.

• 24:10Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 24:11Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, that kills you.

• 24:12Speaker 01

  What is he?

• 24:12Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, they're like, he can play anything between these. I get it. That's why I'm, I'm.

• 24:18Speaker 01

  Are you loving it?

• 24:19Drew Afualo?

  I am loving it.

• 24:20Speaker 01

  Are you loving the process?

• 24:21Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, I love it. I think it's really, it's really different and new from, obviously from social media. And also like, I feel like my job is like, almost the complete opposite of yours. Well, no, you're, you're a huge personality. Obviously you came from wrestling, but like mine's like mostly I'm just myself, like all the time.

• 24:35Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 24:36Drew Afualo?

  So a lot of the time, the roles I get are like, biggest bitch in the office. Like that's like the long lines. They're like, mean older woman next door. Like those are the lines I'm getting. But it, listen.

• 24:47Speaker 01

  Well, you start, you gotta start somewhere.

• 24:48Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, I'm in a who want me phase.

• 24:49Speaker 01

  You gotta start somewhere.

• 24:50Drew Afualo?

  It's like, I'm real open for business.

• 24:52Speaker 01

  Work begets work.

• 24:53Drew Afualo?

  Yeah. And like your name's huge. It's attached to this. So casting directors, if you're in the chat, I am ready and available. I'm using him actively.

• 25:00Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 25:01Drew Afualo?

  That's me doing this now, pitching myself. Here I am. There you go. Anyways.

• 25:05Speaker 01

  Team, make note of this.

• 25:06Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 25:07Speaker 01

  Make note.

• 25:07Drew Afualo?

  I do. Okay. We'll pivot back to Moana. Obviously we want to talk about Moana. So I, I really want to know what you would want fans to take away from this as opposed to like.

• 25:16Speaker 01

  Can I ask you one more thing?

• 25:17Drew Afualo?

  Yes, please.

• 25:18Speaker 01

  Be only because I'm always curious.

• 25:19Drew Afualo?

  Yes.

• 25:19Speaker 01

  Cause we're going to talk about Moana.

• 25:21Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 25:21Speaker 01

  When it comes to your acting, wh- wh- what kind of, like, what do you foresee? Like, wave a magic wand for me?

• 25:28Drew Afualo?

  Um, I mean, I think I would love to do, I always say, like, anything in any range, but I would love to be in comedy, obviously. I would love to be a comedy actress.

• 25:37Speaker 01

  Of course.

• 25:37Drew Afualo?

  Love to do, like, an Abbott Elementary kind of vibe in some regard. I'm not opposed to movies, obviously, but I would love to do something dramatic, too, like, something very intensely dramatic. Like, I took theater in college, and my monologue that I had to do for my final was from Fences, and it was like the stage play version of Fences, though.

• 25:57Speaker 01

  Which monologue was it?

• 25:58Drew Afualo?

  I did Viola Davis's monologue, like, when she's yelling at Denzel Washington.

• 26:01Speaker 01

  The monologue?

• 26:02Drew Afualo?

  The monologue.

• 26:03Speaker 01

  Snot.

• 26:04Drew Afualo?

  Yes, everything, all the most intense emotions. And then my teacher at the time, like, wrote on my thing, "I really hope you pursue acting." But honestly, transparently, I didn't think it was an option for me.

• 26:15Speaker 01

  Why?

• 26:16Drew Afualo?

  Because of what I look like. And I was like, "Well, I don't really see anyone that looks like me, but maybe I could go in a personality route." So I was actually, I majored in journalism and communication, so I worked in sports journalism, because my dad was in the NFL, and, you know, all Sam wins.

• 26:31Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 26:31Drew Afualo?

  Go to the NFL, play football.

• 26:32Speaker 01

  Wait, your dad?

• 26:33Drew Afualo?

  Went to the NFL, yeah.

• 26:34Speaker 01

  What was his name?

• 26:35Drew Afualo?

  Tate Offwalo.

• 26:36Speaker 01

  And he played for?

• 26:37Drew Afualo?

  The Arizona Cardinals.

• 26:38Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 26:39Drew Afualo?

  Like, 2000, 2002.

• 26:40Speaker 01

  He was like the, yes, did great, right?

• 26:42Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, yeah, I think so.

• 26:44Speaker 01

  Yeah, yes.

• 26:44Drew Afualo?

  For someone who just started playing in junior college, yeah.

• 26:47Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 26:47Drew Afualo?

  Not bad. But, like, I just really wanted to do, I wanted to spend time with athletes. That's what I wanted to do, I wanted to interview them. I wanted to spend time with them off the field. So I did, like, my senior capstone thesis on Tua Tagovailoa, when he went to U of A.

• 27:01Speaker 01

  Yeah, of course.

• 27:01Drew Afualo?

  And so I was here when he, like, started his freshman year at Alabama.

• 27:06Speaker 01

  That's right, because your boyfriend's a football player, too, right?

• 27:08Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 27:09Speaker 01

  Or a former, yeah.

• 27:10Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, college football player, mm-hmm.

• 27:11Speaker 01

  Sorry, puka pika.

• 27:13Drew Afualo?

  Peely.

• 27:14Speaker 01

  So sorry, brother.

• 27:15Drew Afualo?

  And it's funny when he says it. You can't say it, but he can.

• 27:18Speaker 01

  Sorry, but I knew it was a P.

• 27:20Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, and it's a peely.

• 27:21Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 27:22Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 27:22Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 27:23Drew Afualo?

  And, um, but yeah, so I wanted to, I thought maybe I could go in that route, the sports journalism route.

• 27:28Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 27:28Drew Afualo?

  Then I worked for the NFL, got fired. Then covid hit, then I started doing this.

• 27:34Speaker 01

  And now look.

• 27:35Drew Afualo?

  And now look. So I went in the personality route.

• 27:37Speaker 01

  Yes, but here's the thing that I love is that you had this door closed, that door closed, you were unsure. I don't know about that. I did the fences monologue. My professor at that time said, hey, I hope you pursue acting. I don't know. I don't know anyone who looks like me. But you never gave up.

• 27:54Drew Afualo?

  I wanted, I knew I wanted to be on camera.

• 27:57Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 27:57Drew Afualo?

  I was like, I got a lot of things to say and a beautiful face. Where can we put that?

• 28:02Speaker 01

  Come on.

• 28:03Drew Afualo?

  On television, just like you, I'm sure. You've been handsome your whole life.

• 28:06Speaker 01

  I love it. I came out of the womb.

• 28:08Drew Afualo?

  That's true.

• 28:09Speaker 01

  That's the thing.

• 28:10Drew Afualo?

  And they probably hate to know it, huh? They do hate it. Do you think they hate it in Hollywood the most? That you're tall, athletic and handsome and good at acting?

• 28:19Speaker 01

  I don't know.

• 28:20Drew Afualo?

  He's literally, he's trying not to be like.

• 28:23Speaker 01

  Take a drink.

• 28:25Speaker 01

  But anyway, I love that. And the reason why I asked about your magic wand is I want to know, and I also want you to say it out loud. That's important.

• 28:34Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my gosh. I want to win an Oscar one day. You win yours first. You get yours first. Yes, of course I do.

• 28:41Speaker 01

  But you said it like you were performing.

• 28:43Drew Afualo?

  I was performing?

• 28:44Speaker 01

  Yeah, you, right?

• 28:45Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 28:46Speaker 01

  You don't have to be dramatic, but I could tell.

• 28:48Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 28:49Speaker 01

  But, but there's truth in that, though.

• 28:51Drew Afualo?

  That's true.

• 28:52Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 28:52Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, maybe that's my disbelief in myself.

• 28:56Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my God, you therapizing me again? Oh, my God, but for free. He would be the most expensive therapist on planet Earth.

• 29:03Speaker 01

  There's you are just, you are just tapping into so much, I think, so.

• 29:08Drew Afualo?

  I think so.

• 29:09Speaker 01

  Anyway, I got your back. I'm here to support you in any way.

• 29:11Drew Afualo?

  Thank you. And now you said it on camera.

• 29:13Speaker 01

  I did say it on camera.

• 29:14Drew Afualo?

  So it's legally binding.

• 29:14Speaker 01

  Yeah, I know.

• 29:15Drew Afualo?

  Because it's on camera and your teeth are here.

• 29:17Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 29:19Drew Afualo?

  Cut, make a cut.

• 29:19Speaker 01

  No, no, no, no, no. I got you. I got you.

• 29:21Drew Afualo?

  But, okay, back to Mona.

• 29:23Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 29:24Drew Afualo?

  What do you hope people take away from this version of Mona as opposed to obviously the original beloved cartoon version? What do you hope people take away from this one?

• 29:32Speaker 01

  I think people around the world, what I hope they take away from this is. To see that our Polynesian culture, which is so represented on the silver screen, that there is connective tissue from our culture to every culture around the world.

• 29:49Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 29:49Speaker 01

  Because ultimately, if there's stuff that you don't agree with with us, value system that may not align, at our core, we're about family.

• 29:58Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 29:58Speaker 01

  We're about pride, we're about respect, we're about taking care of our elderly, and taking care of our kids and raising them right. And we are all about song, and we're about dance, and we're about these things. So I would love for cultures around the world to take that and to be entertained.

• 30:14Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 30:14Speaker 01

  You said, laughing your ass off.

• 30:16Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 30:16Speaker 01

  That was important.

• 30:17Drew Afualo?

  It's true, it's funny.

• 30:18Speaker 01

  It's a funny ass movie.

• 30:19Drew Afualo?

  It's so good.

• 30:20Speaker 01

  It's stunning, it's beautiful, but it's funny.

• 30:22Drew Afualo?

  Did you improv a lot? I felt like I could sense improv in there. You're funny as hell, man.

• 30:28Speaker 01

  Did the shoes, I'm out. Yes.

• 30:31Drew Afualo?

  The way where you said, "It all sucks."

• 30:32Speaker 01

  It all.

• 30:33Drew Afualo?

  I laughed out loud. Yeah.

• 30:36Speaker 01

  Yes, that was improv.

• 30:37Drew Afualo?

  I was like, damn, that was good as hell.

• 30:38Speaker 01

  That was improv.

• 30:38Drew Afualo?

  That's why I said they hate to see how charming you are.

• 30:40Speaker 01

  It just all sucks.

• 30:41Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, they just all sucks.

• 30:44Speaker 01

  I had a blast.

• 30:45Drew Afualo?

  I'm LOLing.

• 30:46Speaker 01

  It was, the best part for me was to, because the character is so big and fun, and I'm like, you know, we already have the roadmap with the first two movies. And then also just me personally, that is inspired by my grandfather, Hachi Pidomia. He was born, I'm sorry, not born here, he was born in Samoa. Uh, but he passed away here, and he was buried here, Diamond Head. And so that meant so much to me to play this character.

• 31:12Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 31:12Speaker 01

  But, so I do want people around the world to experience the film like that. Laughing, recognizing, we all go through the same stuff where we question ourself, what's beyond the reef? I don't know what's beyond the reef, but you could either think, no, I don't want to try it, or, no, I'm gonna try it, and I'm gonna go for it. Like you, like I'm gonna try, and also...

• 31:38Speaker 01

  Love loss and loss of our elderly and life lives. And that happens. And I lost my dad a couple of years ago, suddenly didn't get a chance to say goodbye to him. And we were on fighting terms too, it was so complicated. But that happens in life. And when Grandma Tala passes away in our movie, that's heavy, you know, especially when you have real people, you know, real flesh and blood. Reno and just amazing actress. But finally, I want our people to be proud of what they see. Like, that's important to me. Be proud of what you see.

• 32:15Drew Afualo?

  Absolutely. Especially, and I will say, body representation. Like, I see so many different shapes on one bodies and I love to see it. It's the best thing ever.

• 32:22Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 32:23Drew Afualo?

  It's so important to me and it makes a huge difference. Like, even if it means nothing to anyone except the two of us, it feels worth it to me. And I feel like it'll mean so much more to so many more people because it's so beautiful to watch and to see. And how was it getting to induct a new Moana into this new movie? What was that experience like for you?

• 32:44Speaker 01

  I have all daughters and I feel like Catherine is, I look at her as my own daughter too as well.

• 32:52Speaker 01

  So cool. Like, how, what, how lucky am I, you know, that I get a chance to introduce, I, to be a part of introducing this new actress, this new young girl, woman, lady to the world in this way and to empower her in this way and to embolden her in this way. I love that. Let me tell you, have you, did you know her yet? Have you met her?

• 33:14Drew Afualo?

  No, no, I haven't.

• 33:15Speaker 01

  Okay, so you met her?

• 33:17Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 33:17Speaker 01

  And she's out of New Zealand and she's such a proud someone and...

• 33:26Speaker 02

  When your workday is constantly disrupted, your workflow isn't flowing. It's come to a grinding halt. You don't need an assistant, you need superpowers. Superhuman Go, from the makers of Grammarly, is built for how you actually work. No new tabs, no switching apps, no losing your place. Go handles busy work like finding documents or summarizing email threads, so you can focus on the work only you can do. Try Superhuman Go, from the makers of Grammarly. Find out more at superhuman.com.

• 33:59Speaker 01

  I watched this young lady on set. She gets cast when she's 16. She comes on set at 17. The movie is called Moana. It's globally loved. All of that is on her shoulders.

• 34:13Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 34:14Speaker 01

  She comes to set and every day and I'm watching her and she's gotta go toe to toe with me. She has to carry this film. She has to dance, she has to sing and she's singing songs that are iconically sung by Ali'i. The word I keep going back to with her is pressure. And how much pressure this young girl was feeling and still stepped on set every day and just rocked it. And sure, she had days where she was, it was hard to get through these days.

• 34:48Drew Afualo?

  Oh my God, I can only imagine. Huge shoes to fill.

• 34:50Speaker 01

  Huge shoes to fill, but she was also like, listen, I don't want to try and fill those shoes because it's Ali'i and that's her thing. I want to make it my own.

• 34:57Drew Afualo?

  Totally.

• 34:57Speaker 01

  You know, but I feel like that's the kind of stuff that's in our blood.

• 35:00Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 35:01Speaker 01

  It's like doors closed for you. You get fired from the NFL, these other doors closed. You weren't like, oh, fuck it, I'm gonna pack up, COVID. You're like, COVID.

• 35:17Speaker 01

  She was, I saw her try and she's like.

• 35:20Drew Afualo?

  I knew he was gonna make a joke of my cough, I was like holding it in.

• 35:24Speaker 01

  Get it out. There it is.

• 35:26Drew Afualo?

  Oh my God, I'm so sorry. It's not COVID, I swear to God, it's not.

• 35:30Speaker 01

  We get everyone to quiet.

• 35:31Drew Afualo?

  No, it's not, it's coronavirus.

• 35:33Speaker 01

  I like to think I'm a pretty good observer and I'm giving my answer, you're like.

• 35:39Drew Afualo?

  I had it, I had it though, I had it.

• 35:41Speaker 01

  You did have it.

• 35:42Drew Afualo?

  I'm trying to get it across the finish line, I had it.

• 35:44Speaker 01

  I know, and then I keep talking and then she comes on.

• 35:48Drew Afualo?

  You see me struggling, I'm going, hey, wrap it up, brother, I have to cough.

• 35:51Speaker 01

  I get it, she's had fucking pressure on her shoulders, okay? I gotta fucking cough.

• 35:56Drew Afualo?

  Oh my God.

• 35:58Speaker 01

  Oh shit.

• 35:59Drew Afualo?

  Okay.

• 35:59Speaker 01

  Oh.

• 36:00Drew Afualo?

  So.

• 36:01Speaker 01

  Yeah, so anyway.

• 36:02Drew Afualo?

  I do have to, they did give me, while he was making fun of me.

• 36:06Speaker 01

  Oh, fuck.

• 36:07Drew Afualo?

  They did give me a five minute warning.

• 36:08Speaker 01

  All right.

• 36:09Drew Afualo?

  So I do have to rap with you.

• 36:10Speaker 01

  All right.

• 36:11Drew Afualo?

  But I am, just to reiterate one more time on a serious note, I need to give you your flowers. Like you are just. You're the guy, like, for me, and have been for a very long time. So I admire you.

• 36:24Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 36:25Drew Afualo?

  And I see you. And I know how incredibly hard you have worked to get to this point. And what it's come at the cost of, I feel like, in a lot of ways, but I truly am so thankful. Like, this is my dream job, and I do feel like people like you are on my Mount Rushmore of Polynesian greats. And I guess Jason Momoa, but I do have beef with him that's invisible.

• 36:50Speaker 01

  What's, make it visible.

• 36:52Drew Afualo?

  Well, I'll tell him. I'll tell you. Yeah, I'll start spreading rumors. The very first red carpet I ever walked, I was so nervous. I'd never done anything like that. And I, like, finally was like, they finally wanted to take my picture, because I'm a nobody. You don't know this. You've been in the spotlight and famous for a very long time. But sometimes they don't want to take your picture. I know that's really heartbreaking to hear, because you've never experienced it.

• 37:15Speaker 01

  No, but wait, so you, so I

• 37:16Drew Afualo?

  So he takes my pictures. The paparazzi starts taking my pictures.

• 37:20Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 37:21Drew Afualo?

  And then it starts getting a little bit more, like, feverish, and everyone's like, ooh, everyone starts taking pictures, and I'm like, okay, period, everyone's awake now. And then I look, and then one of them goes, what's your name? I go, Drew. They go, can you move? Because he was right next to me. And they were like, hey, bitch, you're in my shot. And I move over, mind you, you're probably thinking, was this a Jason Momoa feature film? No, he wasn't even in the movie. His big ass was just there, sucking my limelight. And I'm sure you know him, so you can tell him I said that.

• 37:52Speaker 01

  You had, you could tell him now, yes.

• 37:54Drew Afualo?

  Well, now, he'll probably see it now, because you're in it. But anyways, back to my serious thought.

• 37:59Speaker 01

  But I'm so sorry about that, because I can imagine, like, you were there, and you're thinking, hey.

• 38:03Drew Afualo?

  And I'm getting sunned.

• 38:04Speaker 01

  I'm getting sunned.

• 38:05Drew Afualo?

  By this Hawaiian motherfucker. That sucks for me. I was, and I was like, and handsome as hell, get out of my face.

• 38:13Speaker 01

  He, who, him, oh.

• 38:14Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, him.

• 38:15Speaker 01

  Oh, of course.

• 38:16Drew Afualo?

  Him, obviously, him. I'm a handsome woman, but that's different. And we should, we can't talk about that, because we're brother and sister. Obviously.

• 38:23Speaker 01

  Brother and sister.

• 38:24Drew Afualo?

  We're brother and sister.

• 38:25Speaker 01

  Well, I'm sorry. Well, next, here's the thing. I bet you, I know. I want to invite you and Pele?

• 38:31Drew Afualo?

  Peely.

• 38:32Speaker 01

  Peely, cut, fuck, it's a tequila. I'm like, Pugun, Peely.

• 38:38Speaker 01

  Uh, which I saw a couple of your videos, like that dude's in shape too.

• 38:40Drew Afualo?

  He is.

• 38:41Speaker 01

  You guys are like, you're the gym couple, right?

• 38:42Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, I would say.

• 38:44Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 38:44Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, well, now that you said it, every dude who looks up to you physique wise, they're gonna, they just shit their pants.

• 38:50Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 38:51Drew Afualo?

  All at the same time. Someone as masculine as you cosigning me?

• 38:55Speaker 01

  Yes. Hey, well, listen, the video I saw, and I love this because this is the way I am with my wife, is that he was, he was doing a video, I think.

• 39:05Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 39:05Speaker 01

  And he was like, yo, so anyway, and this is what I want you guys to do. It's back day. And he was doing something. And you kind of came in the background.

• 39:11Drew Afualo?

  Yes, yes.

• 39:12Speaker 01

  And he was like, hey, baby, what's up?

• 39:13Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 39:13Speaker 01

  And gave him a kiss.

• 39:15Drew Afualo?

  Well, you're a big fan.

• 39:16Speaker 01

  Like, I love that.

• 39:16Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 39:17Speaker 01

  I'm standing on.

• 39:18Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, give him my dance.

• 39:21Speaker 01

  So I know, we're gonna, I want to invite you to the Moana premiere.

• 39:26Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my God, yes.

• 39:27Speaker 01

  Which is, so, all right, so dude, this is insane. It is gonna be at the Hollywood Bowl, 5,000 people.

• 39:32Drew Afualo?

  What the hell?

• 39:33Speaker 01

  First time ever. The L.A. Philharmonic is gonna be playing our orchestral score in the pit.

• 39:40Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my God, I just got chills.

• 39:41Speaker 01

  Under the stars. It's gonna be a historic night for our film and for our people and our culture.

• 39:48Drew Afualo?

  Period. Can I get a plus six?

• 39:49Speaker 01

  I want you plus six too much.

• 39:51Drew Afualo?

  Okay, okay.

• 39:51Speaker 01

  Too much.

• 39:52Drew Afualo?

  All right, I played the hand too hard. I played it too hard.

• 39:54Speaker 01

  Too hard.

• 39:54Drew Afualo?

  You were in the moment, so I was trying to get as much as I could.

• 39:56Speaker 01

  You tried.

• 39:57Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, I did. See, you said close enough to get fed, then go.

• 40:00Speaker 01

  I'm obsessed with trying.

• 40:01Drew Afualo?

  I'm being more, I'm being more aggressive in my approach.

• 40:03Speaker 01

  Yes.

• 40:04Drew Afualo?

  No worries.

• 40:04Speaker 01

  No, I love it. I'll be there. I love it.

• 40:06Drew Afualo?

  I'll be there.

• 40:06Speaker 01

  Okay?

• 40:06Drew Afualo?

  Yes.

• 40:07Speaker 01

  And then not only that, but you and I are gonna get on the red carpet.

• 40:11Drew Afualo?

  Yeah.

• 40:11Speaker 01

  And we're gonna take our picture.

• 40:12Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, hell, yeah.

• 40:13Speaker 01

  And no one's gonna tell us to move.

• 40:15Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my God, I can't wait.

• 40:17Speaker 01

  And we're gonna stay there for as long as the fuck we want.

• 40:20Drew Afualo?

  Guess who I'm gonna tag? Jason Momoa's ass. Yeah, Pride of Gypsies, I'm tagging your ass on Instagram. So open it up, ho. Okay.

• 40:28Speaker 01

  Yeah, that's it, brother.

• 40:29Drew Afualo?

  Oh, my God, we have an evil plan. Oh, my God, I just made an evil plan with you. That's so awesome.

• 40:33Speaker 01

  I love it. So let's do that.

• 40:34Drew Afualo?

  We're so close. Now we're best friends.

• 40:36Speaker 01

  Come on, we're besties.

• 40:37Drew Afualo?

  That's what I'm gonna tell everyone, anyway. You can cosign me later about that.

• 40:40Speaker 01

  I love it.

• 40:40Drew Afualo?

  They told me to rap, so I want to say thank you again for being an icon.

• 40:44Speaker 01

  I know we gotta rap. Uh, thank you for your words. I do want to go back to, it means so much to me because... The world is noisy. And the noise of the world is the shit that gets algorithmed up. Right? As you know better than anyone. But it's the good stuff, like the stuff where somebody goes, hey, I see you, man. And I love what you're doing and thank you. Thank you for doing the thing. Keep doing the thing. That doesn't get algorithmed up. This is boring.

• 41:13Drew Afualo?

  Right.

• 41:13Speaker 01

  But it is the stuff that anchors our world and our and who we are. So I just want to say thank you for using your big platform to say that. And you keep doing your thing and I got your back and I support you.

• 41:25Drew Afualo?

  Thank you. Likewise. I have your back too, man.

• 41:27Speaker 01

  Thank you.

• 41:28Drew Afualo?

  Look at us, two equally famous, equally rich and handsome, tall, muscular, weight, everything. Same jetty, same bench, everything, same squat, everything.

• 41:41Speaker 01

  Same lats.

• 41:42Drew Afualo?

  Yeah, same lats, all of it, twins.

• 41:45Speaker 01

  Can you do the eyebrow?

• 41:46Drew Afualo?

  I can't do the eyebrow, but we could do this.

• 41:48Speaker 01

  We could do that. Here we go.

• 41:49Drew Afualo?

  Thank you so much to all of you for tuning into this episode of Conversation. Thank you to my amazing, wonderful guest, Dwayne The Rock Johnson. Make sure y'all check out Moana in theaters July 10th. It's gonna be amazing and incredible. I already saw it. You saw us, Key. You saw us have a great time. Make sure you go see it. It's amazing, incredible. And I'm so happy to have Dwayne The Rock Johnson, fucking period. Thank you so much to all my amazing fans. We'll see you next week. Bye.