Dwayne Johnson surprises fan by recreating iconic 90s meme for Christmas

‘Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, 90s Rock nipping at your nose,’ actor sang

Dwayne Johnson is bringing fans back to the 90s.

As a Christmas treat, the former WWE star took to Instagram to show a reel of him singing a parody of Nat King Cole’s “The Christmas Song” while wearing the exact outfit from an old meme of his, complete with a black turtleneck, silver chain necklace, a fanny pack, and a wig.

“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, 90s Rock nipping at your nose,” the 51-year-old began singing. “I’m walking down the hall looking cool as f**k; just take one look at my amazing clothes,” he continued. “Everybody knows a turkey and some camel toe – I mean, mistletoe — helps to make the season bright. Although it’s been said many times many ways, Merry Christmas to you.”

“Merry Christmas, from your keepin’ it one hundred friend. 90’s Rock,” he went on to caption the post.

In response to the post, many people took to the comments section to express how funny they thought the recreation was. “The Rock is the only dude to ever cosplay as himself,” one person commented.

“How massive of a star do you have to be to successfully wear a costume of yourself?” another commenter agreed.

Others commented with laughing emojis or talking about Johnson’s signature eyebrow lift. “I was desperately waiting for the eyebrow and I’m so glad it didn’t disappoint,” someone wrote in the comments.

Another agreed, writing: “I was gonna screammmm if you didn’t lift that brow.”

After being named “Sexiest Man Alive” by People Magazine in 2016, the Moana star revealed that the iconic 1994 photo was taken by his first wife, Dany Garcia.

“Alright, so here’s the thing,” Johnson told the outlet at the time. “It takes a lot of confidence to rock a fanny pack. Put your thumb in the fanny pack. I’m giving a look.”

He went on to point out a hidden detail in the photo that might not have gotten much attention. “I’ve got a tissue underneath my elbow because I felt like my turtleneck was expensive,” he said while laughing. “The funniest thing about this picture is, this is not a joke. I walked out of the house like this. Like: Hey baby, this is it, right?’”

This isn’t the first time the actor has paid homage to the photo. In 2014, he shared the throwback to his Instagram page, captioning the post: “Fanny pack and lean take it to a whole other level…” In 2017, Johnson hosted Saturday Night Live,j where he recreated the legendary shot for the show’s “bumper” image.

During an appearance on E! News’ Daily Pop on 14 March 2022, Johnson revealed his fanny pack in the photo contained “a lot of inappropriate things I can’t mention right now,” such as “phone numbers”.

Johnson also defended his fanny pack look, claiming that all wrestlers wore the accessory at the time. “The funny thing about the fanny pack is, in the world of pro-wrestling in the 90s, everyone had a fanny pack,” he said. “All wrestlers had a fanny pack, all of them. But the one that stands out and that makes the headlines, looking like an idiot, is right here.”

This was not the first time Johnson was asked about the items in his fanny pack. In a 2014 appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Johnson gave more insight into some of the things hidden in his fanny pack: “Pop Tarts and condoms.”