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“Grind Hard, Shine Hard.” A standout on the football field with the University of Miami, California native Dwayne Johnson took the team to a national championship in 1991 and later joined the Canadian Football League before a string of injuries derailed his hopes of ever playing in the NFL. Johnson then turned his attention to professional wrestling where he carried on both his grandfather’s and father’s legacies in the ring as he burst onto the scene and became one of the most popular wrestlers of all time affectionately known by fans as “The Rock,” “The People’s Champ” and “The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment.”

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With professional wrestling at the peak of its popularity in the 1990s and early 2000s, Johnson found exceptional success alongside big names like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin before he decided to hang up his jersey for good and set his sights on Hollywood. Already considered one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, “The Rock” had little trouble making his way to the silver screen and found mainstream success in The Mummy Returns in 2001 before making history for his record-breaking $5.5 million salary, which he earned for his first starring role in The Scorpion King in 2002.

Now a household name and one of the highest paid actors in the history of Hollywood, Johnson has a slew of acting credits to his name including hits like Central Intelligence, San Andreas, Hercules and Pain & Gain in addition to his starring role as Luke Hobbs in The Fast and the Furious franchise. He also has three highly anticipated films—Fast 8, Baywatch and Jumanji—set to release in 2017 that are forecasted to be massive blockbusters and will further add to the 44-year-old’s impressive net worth of $64.5 million and counting!

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Whether he’s in the ring or walking the red carpet at his latest film release, Johnson exudes confidence but, believe it or not, this hasn’t always been the case. Long before he ever made it to Hollywood, the talented wrestler spent an upwards of $7,500 to perfect his look. What in the world could one of the sexiest men in Hollywood need to improve and why?

Thanks to his Pacific Islander heritage, Johnson suffered from gynecomastia, which is an increased amount of fatty tissue in the chest just over the breasts. Despite that he was already ripped thanks to years in the ring, he couldn’t get over the fact that his chest was much flabbier than the rest of his body. That’s when he turned to cosmetic surgery for help.

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At the height of his wrestling career, the media quickly noticed that Johnson refused to strip down to his usual bare-chested and shorts look in the ring. Instead, he wore track pants and a t-shirt during matches, which left many puzzled as to why he wasn’t showing off his killer bod. Johnson finally came clean and explained that the reasoning behind his wardrobe change was to temporarily hide the fresh scars from his plastic surgery. Once he was fully healed, he was more than happy to return to the ring topless where his chest looked just as muscular and ripped as the rest of his physique.

Because of his impressive exercise regimen and dedication to staying physically fit, Johnson’s cosmetic surgery to correct his gynecomastia was a huge success and ultimately made his chest muscles even more pronounced and noticeable than before. Soon after, he was not only taking home huge victories in the ring, he also had the confidence to make his way to Hollywood where he landed one starring role after another.

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Amid his early success in Tinsel Town, Johnson eventually decided to speak openly about the procedure, which caused many of his own male fans to consider the surgery for themselves. Skilled plastic surgeon Dr. Mordcai Blau said that Johnson’s publicity of the procedure was huge for his office where his staff fielded patient phone calls left and right. “Many men who didn’t know anything could be done about their gynecomastia have gone online and learned more about their options,” he said.

While it’s incredibly rare for any celebrity’s time under the knife to be met with widespread praise, that was certainly the case for Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson who is known for setting the bar high and expecting nothing but perfection. Now well into his 40s at 44 years old, Johnson looks as ripped as ever and hasn’t shown any signs of aging despite nearly a decade in the ring and over 17 years (and counting) on the silver screen. Other than shaving his head, adding facial hair and getting a few new tattoos, it’s obvious The Rock can do no wrong when it comes to keeping his sex appeal. After all, he’s the highest paid and sexiest actor in the world. Don’t believe us? Ask him yourself, if you dare!