Does The Royal Rumble Need The Rock? Why WWE Is Thriving Without Past Stars

2024 was a banner year for The Rock in the WWE. It may not have been the original plan for WrestleMania 40, with his return originally casting him as the white knight to tackle Roman Reigns's multi-year WWE Championship reign in the WrestleMania Main Event, but fate intervened to make The Rock's villainous The Final Boss character one of the best runs of his WWE career. His segments were long but unmissable, his social media promos were expletive-ridden and The Rock played an integral part in increasing WWE's business in 2024, a good thing now that he is on the board of the company's parent company, TKO.

There have been all manner of rumors, but contradictory reports exist around The Rock's WrestleMania status because nobody knows for sure whether The Great One will be part of WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas. With the Royal Rumble around the corned and a rumored appeared by the Great One in the match, perhaps the question we should be asking is does The Rock need to be part of this year's WrestleMania season?

Is 'The Final Boss' Run Over?

The Rock Retreats From the Character as WWE Opens on Netflix

The Rock's appearance on WWE's debut night on Netflix caused much confusion among the WWE fanbase. Last year's The Final Boss run saw The Rock mauling Cody Rhodes every week, verbally and physically, then arriving on the biggest Raw of the year to tell him he'd see him again the night after Rhodes finished his story at WrestleMania, and again appearing at 2024's Bad Blood to threaten him and Roman Reigns. It was phenomenal and the most vicious run of The Rock's career elevated The Bloodline to legendary status.

Anyone with a business mind and some common sense can understand The Rock turning up to address the millions (and millions) and electrify the folks at home as WWE reached more homes than they ever have before. Most people know him as The People's Champion and will have missed last year's appearances, but the opportunity for The Rock to drop Roman Reigns was passed up after his Tribal Combat victory in favor of a gracious ceremony, followed by social media clips of Dwayne being everyone's best friend backstage. As he laughed with Cody Rhodes before driving off in his truck, flashing his Teremana smile, it would appear as though The Final Boss run is over.

Where Does The Rock Fit at the Royal Rumble?

Just Because He's not The Final Boss, Doesn't Mean He Can't Be Involved

Featuring the built-in ability for the uninitiated to sit with their friends and be schooled on who everyone is and their current story, the Royal Rumble is ideal to be the first PLE streamed globally on Netflix. This is a massive night for the company, and WWE will want to go as big as possible. Having one of the biggest stars in entertainment on the company's books, it would be foolish to dismiss The Rock's participation in this year's event entirely.

Using that principle, there are already veterans like CM Punk and Rey Mysterio in this year's match for old-school fans to recognize, and John Cena's Farewell Tour makes its first stop at the Royal Rumble. The Rock and John Cena meeting in the Royal Rumble could set up a rubber match between the two later in the year, as they've headlined two WrestleManias together and met during Cena's run-in at WrestleMania 40. There's unfinished business with Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins and he's also part of one of the best storylines in WWE history with The Bloodline.

Does The Bloodline Need The Rock at WrestleMania 41?

Maybe the Best Use of The Rock Isn't in the Main Event

As someone who loved every minute of his 2024 run, it is a crying shame to see The Rock's heel character only be given a few months to shine. It's a definitive moment in the career of one of the greatest performers in WWE history, and The Final Boss was another example of The Rock having a phenomenal ability to redefine and recreate his character. The criticism that he seems to be bulldozing his way into storylines that don't need him seems valid, but there's an argument that The Bloodline would benefit from The Rock's presence at the Royal Rumble and throughout WrestleMania season.

Since last Summer, Solo Sikoa is arguably WWE's most improved performer and a man who has led The Bloodline through memorable moments like putting Paul Heyman through a table at Madison Square Garden. Jacob Fatu has been booked and put over by commentators as a violent force of nature, the psychopath that the psychopaths are afraid of. The Rock's star appeal and rub with older audiences would be enormous for the new Bloodline, legitimizing them as a force to be reckoned with, and a bigger deal overall with The Rock aligning himself with them.

After years of suffering in this regard, WWE now has a litany of heroes that fans can believe in. Now that the creative isn't being run by Vince McMahon, the likes of Sami Zayn, Cody Rhodes, Damian Priest, CM Punk and LA Knight are tough, charismatic, badasses that WWE fans believe in. It's great for The Rock to come home, keep the Netflix execs happy, and smile for the cameras, but Roman and Jey don't need their relative for an extra push in 2025.

On the other hand, the badass who spoke disdainfully to Mama Rhodes would be a godsend to Fatu, Sikoa, Tonga Loa, and Tama Tonga, and that's why it would be a great shame to not see The Final Boss help The Bloodline at a pivotal point in their development. Overall, The Rock is bound to stir up controversy in the future whether he appears or not at the Royal Rumble. Fans should probably be happy that, at the very least, WWE does not need past stars anymore to create good business and entertainment, but that does not mean that a massive star like The Rock cannot add an extra layer to what's already a great product.