The Rock says he will show up on ‘SmackDown’ with road to WrestleMania 41 underway

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson revealed on Thursday night he will make his triumphant return to “Smackdown” on Friday, a month after he reappeared on WWE programming.

The Rock was thought to have been a main fixture in the road to WrestleMania at the start of the year. For many WWE fans, the road back into the title picture against undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes was clear. He seemingly suggested at the Bad Blood premium live event that he was keeping an eye on Rhodes and Roman Reigns.

For a few months, there was no sign of The Rock returning until he showed up on “RAW’s” debut episode on Netflix. He gave Rhodes his flowers for carrying the company since he won the title at WrestleMania 40. However, that was about it. It made Thursday night’s announcement a bit of a surprise.

“Bold and disruptive,” he wrote. “Unpredictable and dangerous.”

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WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque” also confirmed his longtime counterpart, now a close confidant, would return.

“Strap in. When The Final Boss shows up at this time of year, the audience knows absolutely anything is possible. Everything could change in an instant,” Levesque said in a statement.

What happens then is up in the air.

The Rock famously inserted himself into the title picture between Rhodes and Reigns last season, which culminated in a tag-team match at WrestleMania 40 Night 1 that determined the stipulation for Rhodes vs. Reigns at WrestleMania 40 Night 2.

He vowed he would see Rhodes again, but with the “RAW” title picture set and the Elimination Chamber participants squared away to see who will face Rhodes at WrestleMania 41, there does not appear to be a clear path for The Rock if he had a title shot in mind.

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