Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, loved his personal custom Ford F-150 Raptor pickup truck. Fans know this because the truck made regular appearances on Johnson’s social media.
We say “loved” that Raptor in the past tense, because Johnson gave that truck away to a Navy veteran who has devoted much of his post-military career to helping others. Johnson gifted the truck to Oscar Rodriguez at a special Thanksgiving holiday screening of his new movie, “Red Notice,” in Los Angeles.
After he surprised the crowd by walking into the theater, Johnson invited Rodriguez onstage to praise him for his work as a personal trainer, his role as a leader in his church, his efforts to take care of his 75-year-old mother and how he provides support and prepares meals for women who are the victims of domestic violence.
Johnson posted a video of the moment on Twitter, and it’s worth watching to see Rodriguez’s reaction once The Rock invites him out to the parking lot for a big surprise.
Johnson drives a Porsche Taycan in the movie and originally planned to give that away, but Porsche said no to the idea. He then stepped up and decided to gift his personal truck.
As we can see from Rodriguez’s reaction, that specific truck means a lot more to him than any Porsche ever could. He posted on Instagram after the event. “I woke up today, counted my blessings,” he said. “It’s Thanksgiving. There’s just so much to be thankful for. Just grateful that The Rock hooked me up with this whip. I’m gonna use it, baby. I’m gonna use it to encourage people and help people. And bring a lot of cheer to people. Rock, you the man.”
Yeah, the cynics out there will point out that Ford likely will be more than happy to hook Johnson up with another custom Raptor after they got so much free publicity from his gift to Rodriguez. But don’t let that diminish the generosity of the gesture and the long-term benefits a new truck offers to a veteran like Rodriguez.
“Red Notice” stars Johnson, Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds; It’s playing in theaters around the country and also streaming on Netflix.
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