Dwayne Johnson wants people to channel their “BDE” — Big Dwayne Energy.
In a new commercial for ZOA Energy drinks, an aerial acrobatics newbie, an overwhelmed working mom and a surgeon transform into the actor, who then completes their tasks with focus and swagger. Of course, it’s set to Latto’s hit “Big Energy.”
Johnson, 51, co-founded ZOA with his ex-wife Dany Garcia, her husband Dave Rienzi, and John Shulman. For their latest project, “I wanted to create a campaign where I could look as ridiculous as possible and put me in these ridiculous outfits and clothing that I would still have fun in,” laughs Johnson to PEOPLE.
He adds that there are two key elements to channeling big Dwayne energy.
“Number one, quieting the noise,” he says. “There’s so much noise out there that we always fight to quiet and it could be so distracting and at times, so cynical and negative.” The other is to “have fun and know that your true self is all you need.”
“I think it’s really a doubling down on your personal confidence and being your true, authentic self and just being unapologetic about that,” adds Rienzi.
Of all the parts Johnson played in the ad, recreating his now-legendary ‘90s look was his favorite. In the original photo, which has circulated social media over the years, he sports a black turtleneck, gold chain, mom jeans and a fanny pack. Now, Johnson stands next to himself dressed as ’90s Rock’ in the commercial, who is giving “some serious Big Dwayne Energy,” according to an onlooker.
“We saved that for the last day of shooting,” says Johnson. “This one really took the cake. So, when I walked on set as the ’90s Rock, everybody’s reaction, I thought, was a good indicator of what people would feel when they finally saw the spot.”
He says one of the best reactions to the outfit over the years was from Jennifer Lopez when he sent her a message telling her he couldn’t make it to a Halloween party.
“We were living in the same neighborhood, and I sent her that picture,” he recalls. “I said, ‘Listen, I can’t come to the party, but this is what I was going to come looking like, looking like this idiot.’ She was like, ‘This is the greatest picture I’ve ever seen and I love this.’”
Johnson’s best advice for wearing a fanny pack with confidence is “don’t look down, and just be confident of what’s actually in the fanny pack.” If you see the Moana star wearing one these days, he says it’s likely carrying his phone, a ZOA, Pop-Tarts, a shot of tequila, and “about two or three other inappropriate things,” he jokes.
Johnson’s go-to flavor of the drink is one of his own doing. “I always like to say that I’m a teenager and I’m not too sure if I’ll ever grow up, so my favorite is grape,” he says. “Those were fun meetings that I had with Dany and Dave and our formulators and our partners saying, ‘Hey, guys know this sounds crazy. I feel like a 12-year-old, but can we have grape? Let’s do a grape.’ It wound up being one of our top sellers and it makes me very happy.”
Johnson, Garcia and Rienzi reflected on what other public figures have channeled BDE lately.
“I’m going to give a shout-out to the Premier Women’s Hockey League that just launched, because that group of women who just launched their inaugural season, they’re all bringing BDE and doing something fantastic,” Garcia tells PEOPLE.
“Kevin Hart, my son,” Johnson jokes before adding, “I’ll go with Emily Blunt and the entire cast of Oppenheimer and the director of Oppenheimer [Christopher Nolan]. After Usher’s Super Bowl appearance, I would say for sure, Usher, too. And Luda, my boy, I’ve known Luda for a long, long time, and H.E.R. and everybody up there.”
Also someone with BDE: Johnson’s Moana character, Maui. This month brought the news that a sequel to the 2016 film is slated for November, and Johnson says he “cannot wait” for fans to see it.
“I’m so grateful to everything that film has brought to families all around the world over these years,” he says. “This is not hyperbole when I tell you this is the number one request that I get when I meet fans anywhere is, ‘Hey, could you sing “You’re Welcome” for my kid, or it’s their birthday, or it’s bat mitzvah.’ Whatever it is, it’s always that song. And that movie has brought so much joy and it’s so empowering to young girls and young boys and people, period. I’m so pumped and hyped for our sequel.”
Johnson, who reprises his role as the demigod, adds that Disney has “spared no expense” in Moana 2. “That sounds a little cliche, but they’ve also just taken such tremendous accountability to deliver something that is so special,” he says “I’ve had a chance to see some of the movie and the technology is just extraordinary.”
“As a reminder, our ocean is alive and it has a heartbeat and a soul,” he adds. “And to see the ocean come alive with the technology that I have seen that we’re applying, it’s mind-boggling. And I’m just so excited to deliver it for the families around the world.”
