First non-white Sexiest Man Alive in 20 years

CEBU, Philippines - It’s always an honor for anyone to be named People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive, but for Dwayne Johnson, it means a little more…

The half-Samoan, half-black actor is the first non-white male to receive the title since Denzel Washington in 1996—20 years ago.

Needless to say, Johnson is stoked about the opportunity and admitted he feels like he’s reached a pinnacle in his career. However, that’s not to say he didn’t struggle for many years in order to get here.

“When I was growing up here in Hawaii, I was like 13, 14 years old, I was doing a lot of things that I shouldn’t have,” he revealed. “I was getting arrested multiple times but at the same time, always very respectful to my teachers and elders. I was unsure of who I was and who I wanted to be.”

Johnson’s family struggled financially when he was growing up, so he was determined to play football and help them afford a better life.

“I played football for 10 years with one goal, which was to play in the NFL, which meant we’d never be evicted again. It meant that I could buy my parents their first home, their cars, whatever they wanted.”

However, he never ended up making it. “That failure was tough; that was a tough pill,” he admitted.

After that, the actor re-evaluated his life with just a few dollars and some dreams. “I literally looked in my wallet and I had a five, a one and change. So I rounded it up to seven. It was a real rock bottom for me and I didn’t know how defining or how meaningful seven bucks would be only until years later in my life,” he explained.

Shortly thereafter, he found himself transitioning into Hollywood and trying to make it in the WWE. “I was met with skepticism and some cynicism of where I came from and the world of wrestling. Because you’ve got to prove yourself,” he said. “But there wasn’t a blueprint for me to follow. It wasn’t like, ‘Oh, there’s this half-Samoan, half-black wrestler and you just do it like him.’”

Today, he’s the highest paid actor, and he’s glad no one paved his path for him. “What’s even better is that no one did it before me,” he added. “I’ve got to make up my own rules myself.”

Johnson—who voices the demigod Maui in Disney’s “Moana”—was flattered to receive the Sexiest Man Alive call. “I said, ‘That’s awesome.’ And then what went through my mind was just how cool and exciting it is. And then I thought, ‘Wow, we’ve pretty much reached the pinnacle.’ I’m not quite too sure where we go from here. I’ve done it all, this is it.”

The star is expecting to get some grief from his friends over the title. “It’s coming now. I can just imagine how it’s going to be,” he says with a big laugh. “But see, here’s the thing: They give me grief, but they all wish. They all wish.”

What makes Johnson sexy? “This is the kind of question that gets me into trouble,” he jokes. In all seriousness, he says a sense of humor is probably the sexiest thing about himself.

“And I think probably just not trying to be sexy and just being cool and confident in your movies,” the “Jumanji” actor adds. “I think with a lot of my fans, I’ve gotten to a very, very cool place where there’s a direct line between the man they know off-screen and the man they see on-screen.”

It doesn't hurt that he’s good-looking, either. “It starts with the skin,” the 44-year-old says with a laugh. “We’ve only got one face. You’ve got to take care of it. So I exfoliate.” (FREEMAN)