NICHOLAS ROSSIER
Wrestling with History
Kamehameha the Great versus “The Great One”
Hawai`i has long been the target of filmmakers’ attempts to capture the exotic.
Images of Hawai`i as a tropical paradise
stretch back to the beginning of American
cinema. This deliberately constructed version
of Hawai`i served various interests, perhaps,
most importantly, encouraging the popular
perception of Hawai`i as the definitive tourist
attraction. Hawai`i often served as a backdrop
for a compelling story and has rarely been
presented as a subject itself. Even more disconcerting is the systematic elimination of Native
Hawaiian people as primary characters
in the mainstream thought. Virtually all
movies that feature Native Hawaiians relegate
indigenous people of the islands to secondary,
supporting roles.
Recently is was announced that Dwayne
Johnson, known to wrestling fans as The
Rock, was selected to play the role of King
Kamehameha the Great in a big budget
Hollywood film for Columbia Pictures. 1
This announcement was made while Johnson and the WWE, the wrestling promotion
company for which he works, were on a
tour of Hawai`i. The local media greeted the
news with great fanfare and the local film
industry viewed such a move as a boon for
the struggling entertainment industry.2 Others were more skeptical. Native Hawaiian
activists objected to the selection of Dwayne
Johnson, a person of African-American and
Samoan descent, as well as the non-Hawaiian
screenwriter as part of an ongoing process of
cultural re-appropriation by non-indigenous
interests. 3 Kamehameha, they argued, was
the central figure of Native Hawaiian identity
and unity, and the presentation of his story by
Hollywood would likely result in a distortion
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, WWF
of historical truths and the development of a
warped image of the revered king.
The Transcendence and Entrapment
of Race
Dwayne Johnson maintains a unique position within the entertainment world. He is
simultaneously a person of color and a person
beyond color. As “The Rock”, he entertains
fans of the wrestling world with witty one-liners and snappy put-downs. He is valorized as
a third generation wrestler, denoting his commitment and authenticity within the world of
professional wrestling. He is the son of Rocky
Johnson, a prominent African-American
wrestler, and the grandson of “High Chief”
Oceania in the Age of Global Media
Peter Britos, editor, Special Issue of Spectator 23:1 (Spring 2003) 41-43.
41
Peter Maavia, a Samoan American wrestler.
Both family members worked for companies
run by the McMahon family, which currently
owns controlling interest in World Wrestling
Entertainment, formerly the World Wrestling
Federation. He plays the role of a “face”, a heroic character that is a fan favorite. He fights
against “heels”, villains of the wrestling world
who lie, cheat and steal their way to the top.
Racially, Johnson occupies a quite complex
position. The character of The Rock rejects racial identifiers and chooses to emphasize his
own personal greatness.4 Johnson, the person,
has participated in many public events and
ceremonies that indicate his position as a person of color.5 The layered world of reality of
professional wrestling allows both ideas to exist simultaneously, that is, performers are both
“heroes” or “villains” and regular people at
the same time. They wear masks and engage
in stereotyped behavior as a means of cultural
shorthand when communicating with their
audience. The WWE’s former motto, “Get
It!”, referred to the recognition by the audience that the performances were staged but
that fans watched the staged drama in a state
of suspended disbelief.
Race and the Hollywood Eye
Disney’s film Lilo and Stitch was a relative
success at the box office. It also demonstrated
part of Disney’s ongoing plan to incorporate
characters of different ethnic and cultural
backgrounds than the Euro-centric models offered in earlier generations. Pocahontas, Mulan,
Aladdin and Lilo and Stitch all present non-European characters as protagonists and attempt
to introduce elements of the cultural setting
into the narrative of the film. Yet, there have
still been problems surrounding the fictional
liberties taken in crafting a story that is accessible to Euro-American audiences who may
lack familiarity with the showcased culture.
Additionally, there have been controversies
concerning the limits placed on the input of
representatives of the cultures depicted in
these films. This would suggest that attempts
by Euro-Americans to show “sensitivity” to
minority populations are set to fail and likely
to promote greater misunderstanding.
There is, however, an alternative view
that advances the notion that the inclusion
of people of color into mainstream films can
help sensitize an industry that would otherwise ignore them. While non-Euro-American
actors may be cast in roles that are not consistent with their personal ethnic or cultural
background, the mere fact that minority actors
are included offers the hope of an evolving,
progressive view toward people of color.
In specific reference to Dwayne Johnson
as Kamehameha, this argument follows;
the inclusion of a Polynesian actor in the
role of a Polynesian monarch is a step forward
and could introduce increased opportunities for Polynesian actors as individuals
and Polynesians as a community. Strong,
positive role models steering clear of the existing
stereotypes of Polynesian people and tropical
islands as tourist destinations could possibly
serve as a means of increasing artistic interest in groups previously ignored as well
as buttress the goals of those who seek
to preserve and expand the living legacy of
indigenous people of the Pacific.
Another benefit of the recent controversy
has been the desire by Native Hawaiian
artists to combat the Hollywood dominated
cooptation of their history and images.6 A rival
film company has set its sights on producing a film that could serve as an indigenous
answer to what the Dwayne Johnson film may
propose as history. This indigenous film
would demonstrate the ability of native artists
and actors to participate in modern cinema as
creators rather than just subjects of narrative
films. Such a project could also spur a more
continuous construction of Native Hawaiian
imagery by Native Hawaiians.
This would parallel the relative success
of the Hawaiian music industry in its ability to perpetuate traditional musical styles
while simultaneously developing new ones.
Indigenous artists would then clearly demonstrate their adeptness in maintaining cultural
traditions while engaging contemporary EuroAmerican cultural.7 The development of a
Native Hawaiian film industry committed to
All-purpose ethnicity. The Rock in The Scorpion King, 2002
the protection and perpetuation of the Native
Hawaiian culture could follow.
Conclusions
Hawai`i is and will remain something that
is closely identified with tourism. The state
of Hawai`i continues to package itself as the
perfect island paradise to the detriment of
the indigenous population. The power of the
state is brought into play to lure Hollywood
filmmakers, as well as filmmakers from other
countries, encouraging them to weave their
own stories into the fabric of well-established
stereotyped images of Hawai`i. Native Hawaiians will continue to endure such exploitation.
Some will trade some amount of their cultural
authenticity to influence the direction of the
films in an attempt to steer such productions
away from the most harmful of stereotypes
while allowing those stereotypes deemed
less harmful to find their way into the films of
another generation of Euro-Americans.
At the same time, uncompromised images
of Native Hawaiians will find their way into
the edges of Euro-American mainstream
media. Native Hawaiians will participate in
the manufacturing of such products, developing the business and artistic contacts that
will provide a better groundwork for future
generations of indigenous people to tell
their own stories. This can open up cultural
spaces in which established stereotypes can
be wrestled away from Euro-American minds
and replaced by ideas and images more coherent with the core values of Native Hawaiian
culture and history.
NOTES
“The Rock a warrior in Hawaii next?”, The Guelph Mercury, June 20, 2002. (p. D5).
“Homecoming for The Rock”, The Honolulu Advertiser, Kyle Sakamoto. June 14, 2002.
3
“Casting The Rock as King Draws Fire”, Associated Press Online. July 15, 2002.
4
When another Samoan wrestler by the name of “Rikishi” claimed to have harmed another wrestler to benefit fellow
Samoan The Rock, as well as all Polynesian wrestlers exploited by the professional wrestling world, The Rock flatly
rejected Rikishi’s charges of racism and bigotry. The Rock also rejected any need for help, for such assistance would
be personally offensive for someone dubbed “The Great One”. This rejection of the so-called “Race Card” was met
with many cheers from the wrestling audience.
5
Dwayne Johnson, on the other hand, has engaged in activities that have sometimes focused on his connection to
particular minority cultural groups and sometimes to audiences that reflect the larger Euro-American audience.
See “Homecoming for The Rock”. The Honolulu Advertiser. June 14, 2002.
6
“The Rocky and Kamehameha Show”. Malcolm Naea Chun. Honolulu Star-Bulletin. July 14, 2002.
7
Early hapa-haole music was directed at Euro-American consumers and sold Hawai`i as an exotic locale that
welcomed Euro-American intrusion. Subsequent Native Hawaiian musicians, however, have re-appropriated this
musical genre to recast them as authentically Hawaiian products. See Paradise Remade: The Politics of Culture and
History in Hawaii. Elizabeth Buck, Temple University Press: Philadelphia. 1993.
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