Will The Rock return at WWE WrestleMania 42 amid low ticket sales?

The Final Boss has been absent since early 2025.

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson played a massive part in John Cena’s heel turn at the Elimination Chamber 2025. However, since his appearance last year, the Final Boss has been absent from WWE Television.

Despite speculations and rumors, Johnson has not made any appearances, but as usual, a single hint and fans start to speculate on his return. The same happened when, ahead of the recent SmackDown, Pat McAfee teased a major surprise; many fans started to speculate on Johnson’s return.

Although the surprise turned out to be a discount for WrestleMania 42 tickets that WWE has been struggling to sell out, fans are still hoping for an appearance by Johnson at the PLE. So what’s the latest update, and will the Final Boss appear in Las Vegas?

Fans shouldn’t get their hopes up for The Rock’s return

Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter noted that, based on what happened in Toronto (at Elimination Chamber) last year, when ticket sales are low, Ari Emanuel reaches out to The Rock, something CM Punk subtly referenced in a recent promo on Raw.

That said, Meltzer notes that internal sources currently believe Johnson is not expected to appear. Still, he adds the usual disclaimer: surprises of that scale are often tightly guarded, with only a small inner circle aware, and misdirection is common.

With this year’s WrestleMania ticket sales underwhelming, WWE has already tried to boost interest by announcing John Cena as host. Outside of Cena, the only names likely to significantly move the needle would be ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin or The Rock.

So, while nothing can be ruled out entirely, the current expectation is that fans shouldn’t count on The Rock showing up.

The 42nd edition of WrestleMania will take place as a two-night event on April 18 and 19 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. 

Night 1 will be headlined by Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Randy Orton, while Night 2 will close with CM Punk putting the World Heavyweight Championship on the line against Roman Reigns.

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