French museum to fix actor Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s waxwork after skin tone complaints
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The Grevin museum’s wax figure (left) depicts American actor Dwayne Johnson with pale white skin, and it bears little likeness to him.
PHOTOS: MUSEE GREVIN/FACEBOOK, DWAYNE THE ROCK JOHNSON/FACEBOOK
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LOS ANGELES – A French museum said on Monday that it is working urgently to fix a much-derided waxwork of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson after the American actor complained about its pale skin tone.
Johnson, 51, has joined the chorus of mockery after a Paris museum unveiled a botched waxwork of him, suggesting its skin colour – among other things – needs updating.
Johnson, who is of Samoan and Black origin, took to Instagram on Monday to joke about the Grevin museum’s wax figure, which depicts him with pale white skin and bears little likeness to him.
“For the record, I’m going to have my team reach out to our friends at the Grevin Museum in Paris, France, so we can work at ‘updating’ my wax figure here with some important details and improvements – starting with my skin colour,” he wrote.
“And next time I’m in Paris, I’ll stop in and have a drink with myself.”
The museum said on Monday that staff were reworking the wax figure, and that an updated version would be reinstalled on Tuesday morning.
“They’re going to work all night on it, so that it’s more in line with fans’ expectations,” said museum director Yves Delhommeau in a statement.
“We’re also going to reconfigure the lighting because there was a lighting issue that was having the effect of lightening his skin.”
Johnson “will come see us later on to see if there are other modifications that need to be made”.
The figure was unveiled on social media last week by the Grevin museum, which draws nearly 800,000 visitors a year.
But a photo intended to promote the new statue drew an outcry from Johnson’s fans, ranging from bemusement to anger.
One commenter said the figure looked like an “Eastern European plumber”.
“Why would you white ‘wax-wash’ him?” wrote another.
Comedian James Andre Jefferson Jr released a video online mocking the statue.
“You made The Rock look like he’s David Beckham. It looks like The Rock is about to be part of the royal family. I’m low-key offended,” said Jefferson.
In 2018, the museum drew similar mockery for an unflattering figure of French president Emmanuel Macron.
Producing a Grevin sculpture takes six months and costs €50,000 (S$72,900) to €60,000. AFP
