Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson announced on Tuesday that he would be playing the titular hero in the Netflix film 'John Henry and the Statesman'

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is getting flack for casting himself as an African-American folklore legend in an upcoming Netflix film he is also producing.

Johnson announced on Tuesday that he would be playing the titular hero in the Netflix film 'John Henry and the Statesman.'

'When the man comes around. Honored to play a childhood hero of mine, JOHN HENRY & his disruptive band of fellow folklore legends from around the world,' the 46-year-old actor said on Twitter, along with a brief teaser trailer. '@Netflix are the perfect partners and platform to build.'

On Instagram, he added: 'My dad would sing 'Big John' to me every time he would put me to bed.'

The legend of John Henry tells the tale of a black steel-driver, and former slave, who raced against a steam-powered rock drilling machine supposedly in the 1800s.

The legend of John Henry tells the tale of a black steel-driver, and former slave, who raced against a steam-powered rock drilling machine in the 1800s

Henry would beat the machine, only for his heart to give out from the stress. He died with his hammer in his hand.

Depictions of Henry show him as a young, dark-skinned black man. Actors Danny Glover and Roger Aaron Brown have both played the strapping hero on-screen and Henry was even featured on a postage stamp in 1996.

Depictions of Henry show him as a young, dark-skinned black man. Actor Danny Glover played Henry in 1986's 'Tall Tales and Legends'

Johnson is a biracial man - his father is black-Canadian, while his mother is Samoan - and he has played a slue of racially ambiguous roles.

And fans of the folk tale brought that to the forefront of their arguments as to why it was questionable that the Moana star was playing such a historic role.

'John Henry has always been depicted as dark-skinned but o k a y,' said #KeepIt host, Ira Madison III.

The sentiment was shared by Mikki Kendall, who added: 'Nope. He's great, but he's definitely not John Henry. This is a wonderful time for someone new to break in. John Henry was dark skinned & young.'

'Historically, John Henry’s always been depicted as having a *very* dark skin complexion and while Dwayne Johnson is undeniably a black man, this is all quite (face with monocle emoji),' said Charles Pulliam-Moore. 'I’m legitimately curious who the target audience for this movie is meant to be.'

Roger Aaron Brown played the hero in the 1995 film 'Tall Tale' from Disney

'Check the source songs and stories. John Henry has always been imagined as a dark-skinned man,' another user said. 'That’s not up for debate. However, it is hilarious to see the same people who constantly tell dark-skinned women to just “get over it” throwing a hissy fit.'

Henry was featured on a postage stamp in 1996

Many took issue with Johnson taking the role, comparing him to stars like Zoe Saldana and Amandla Stenberg who have received criticism for taking roles meant for someone described as having dark skin.

Saldana was even blasted for her role as jazz icon Nina Simone, with the legend's estate telling the actress to 'Go to hell!'

A user asserted: 'The Rock is black when it's profitable and racially ambiguous when it isn't. We need a proud, strong, all-day black man to play John Henry.'

'How can you play BOTH a Polynesian demigod in "Moana" and a black former slave, John Henry? I'll tell you why,' commented another user. '#onedroprule makes biracials "chameleons". And they will have NO problem taking those roles.'

Several users shared names of actors they felt would have been perfect for the role, with 'This is Us' star Sterling K. Brown and Idris Elba leading the pack

One user said: 'The Rock as John Henry?!!! I bet Morris Chesnut somewhere p***ed!'

'John Henry has always been depicted as dark-skinned but o k a y,' said #KeepIt host, Ira Madison III

The sentiment was shared by Mikki Kendall, who added: 'Nope. He's great, but he's definitely not John Henry. This is a wonderful time for someone new to break in. John Henry was dark skinned & young'

'Historically, John Henry’s always been depicted as having a *very* dark skin complexion and while Dwayne Johnson is undeniably a black man, this is all quite (face with monocle emoji),' said Charles Pulliam-Moore. 'I’m legitimately curious who the target audience for this movie is meant to be'

While Johnson produces and stars in the film, Jake Kasdan will be directing. The duo worked together on 2017's Jumanji.

Seven Bucks Productions' Dany Garcia has also been tapped for the project, along with Hiram Garcia and Beau Flynn of FlynnPictureCo.

'We have been committed to an international storytelling model for more than a decade,” Dany Garcia said, according to Variety. 'Our partnership with Netflix is giving us an incredible opportunity to reach a broad and diverse audience in the most accessible and intimate manner. We are absolutely thrilled with the opportunity.'

DailyMail.com has reached out to both Johnson and Netflix for a comment.



