Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson gets emotional as he strips off to show sacred tattoo

Former wrestler Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, 53, has shared a video of himself performing a “sacred” Samoan dance with his family – including his mother Ata – in Hawaii

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has opened up about how “emotional” it was to perform a “sacred” Samoan dance alongside his family.

The 53-year-old former wrestler turned Hollywood star has posted footage of the group – featuring his Samoan mum Ata and his daughters – executing the Taualuga in Hawaii.

The Black Adam leading man removed his top to proudly showcase his Polynesian tattoo and struck the ground during the ceremonial display, which represents the culmination of something significant.

Dwayne – who is dad to Simone, 24, Jasmine, nine, and six-year-old Tiana – wrote beside the footage on Instagram: “I was blessed to have this very special moment on stage with my mom, my daughters, and our aiga (family) – dancing our Samoan culture’s sacred dance, the Taualuga.

“It’s custom for Samoan men to take their shirts off to proudly show our Polynesian tatau (tattoo) and the intricate stories our ink tells.”

“Also custom for Samoan women to lift their lava lavas up to proudly show their beautiful malu (tattoo) on their legs as well.

“I’m slapping the ground as a way to show my respect for how significant this is and how SACRED our ground becomes in this moment with our elders, and my daughters dancing next to me.”

“It’s emotional. You can’t help but feel it. The mana.

“Life is busy for everyone – so special moments like this mean the world to me, to honour our family, our culture and always so good coming back home to Hawaii.”

Earlier this year, the WWE star expressed his joy at being able to represent Polynesian culture through the Moana franchise.

Dwayne, who lends his voice to Maui in the Disney animated film series, told E! News: “The thing about ‘Moana’ – and I think the success about ‘Moana’ – and I wanna thank everybody out there, it’s just been this global embrace of our Polynesian culture, and it’s really cool.”

Dwayne also takes great pleasure in the fact that the films can inspire young girls.

The actor, who is father to Jasmine and Tiana with his wife Lauren Hashian, and Simone with Dany Garcia, said: “Of everything that I love about Moana, the thing that I love most is my daughters, all three of my daughters, see themselves in Moana. And I think this idea of emboldening and empowering our young women and how important that is.

“And I get to run around, with my long hair as Maui, and go, ‘Cheehoo,’ and embolden our young girls – it’s awesome.”

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