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The Rewatchables ·

The Rock

year 1996decade 90sdirector Michael Baygenre Actiongenre Thriller
host Bill Simmonshost Chris Ryanguest Mina Kimes
All 18 categories

Most Rewatchable Scene · 28:34

Mine cart chase

Bill Simmons: The weapons-theft scene is praised: the "bubble face" guy trapped in the vault, the rockets with green balls inside, and David Morris's "sorry, dude"; a take follows that Bubbleface deserved to die for dropping the rocket.

Bill Simmons: Connery's first scene, 25 minutes in, with long hair in prison, is called one of the coolest entrances ever; the "lead left in your pencil" line and William Forsy's needlessly cutting insults are singled out.

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie · 1:30:10

"That's the most awful thing I've ever seen"

Mina Kimes: Real Rockheads love the morgue-scene lines about the feet and "that's the most awful thing I've ever seen"; Cage's subtle readings like "FBI, freeze, sucker" and introducing himself as Stanley Goodspeed are favorites, and the Rocket Man quote is the stupidest but still funny.

The film

The Rock (1996)

Directed by Michael Bay · Action

136 minutes

IMDb Find on JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Sean Connery Captain (retired) John Patrick Mason SAS/MI6
Nicolas Cage Special Agent Dr. Stanley Goodspeed
Ed Harris Brigadier General Francis "Frank" X. Hummel
David Morse Major Tom Baxter
John Spencer FBI Director James Womack
William Forsythe Special Agent Ernest Paxton
Michael Biehn Commander Charles Anderson
Vanessa Marcil Carla Pestalozzi
Gregory Sporleder Captain Frye
Tony Todd Captain Darrow
John C. McGinley Captain Hendrix
Bokeem Woodbine Gunnery Sergeant Crisp
Danny Nucci Lieutenant Shepard
Claire Forlani Jade Angelou
Anthony Clark Paul the hairdresser
Stanley Anderson President of the United States
Philip Baker Hall Chief Justice (uncredited)

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

18:57

Half-Assed Internet Research

Jaws-inspired bomb scene; script-credit arbitration; Cage's no-swearing idea; real Navy SEALs; Hummel's origin; added...

Jaws-inspired bomb scene; script-credit arbitration; Cage's no-swearing idea; real Navy SEALs; Hummel's origin; added car chase; naked guitar scene; Connery's coverage-first contract; Fairmont balcony calls; Bay's sequel idea; James Bond theory

In the discussion (9)
Approx. transcript time · 00:18:57Read transcript
  • A research tidbit delivered early: Cage showed Bay and Bruckheimer Richard Dreyfus scenes from Jaws, wanting to channel them in the bomb-dismantling scene. — Bill Simmons
  • So many writers worked on the script that it went to Writers Guild arbitration: Aaron Sorkin and Quentin Tarantino involved, David Weisberg and Douglas Cook on the story, Mark Rosner granted credit, Bay backing Jonathan Hensley, and two British screenwriters Connery brought in who were fired; about nine writers. — Bill Simmons
  • Cage's idea that his character would never swear produced lines like "gee whiz"; some Navy SEALs were real SEALs; Don Simpson created Hummel from a 60 Minutes piece on the government not acknowledging soldiers who died on covert missions. — Bill Simmons
  • Per Bay, the car chase was inserted after early screenings revealed a big flat hole, to appease younger filmgoers. — Bill Simmons
  • On Cage playing guitar naked: Bay thought Cage wanted to show off his body, while Cage wanted to show his character's comfort at home; the takeaway is how hairy he is. — Bill Simmons
  • Connery's contract had his coverage filmed first, then he left for his cabin on Alcatraz. — Bill Simmons
  • The balcony scene was shot on location at the Fairmont, and people called about a person dangling from the balcony. — Bill Simmons
  • Bay's unmade sequel idea: Goodspeed has the microfilm, nowhere to turn, and enlists Mason in a role reversal, likened to National Treasure. — Bill Simmons
  • An internet theory holds that Mason was James Bond, but his answer of Army rather than Navy blew the wink. — Bill Simmons
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22:28

Roger Ebert's review
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:22:28Read transcript
  • Ebert gave the film three and a half stars and called it a first-rate slam-bang action thriller with a lot of style and no little humor. — Bill Simmons
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34:33

Picking Nits

Balcony rope; underground mine carts; Jade's easily found address; Carla in the situation room; Connery's driving; ho...

Balcony rope; underground mine carts; Jade's easily found address; Carla in the situation room; Connery's driving; hostages' bathroom breaks; green egg fight; atropine refusal; unpaid ransom; unguarded prisoner; rope throws

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:33Read transcript
  • Picked early: would the rope break or rip off Connery's arm pulling the 180-pound John Spencer, and how does a 20-foot rope come from a shower curtain; nitpicking a Bay movie is like criticizing a child's drawing.
  • Moved up from Picking Nits: why is there a Disneyland world of mine carts, burners and storage under a prison on an island, and was it filmed separately; an attempt to research it is mentioned. — Bill Simmons
  • Flagged as a nit: characters supposedly wiped from the record, yet Cage's friend finds Jade Angelou and her address in 30 seconds, though the scene establishes trust. — Mina Kimes
  • Carla is questioned as a character: she is told the underwater strategy in the situation room with top officials; the part feels shoehorned, possibly from notes to include Vanessa Mercell and Claire Forlani so it was not all dudes.
  • Connery has not driven for 35 years yet zooms a Hummer around San Francisco and knows the streets.
  • Did the hostages ever eat or go to the bathroom over about three days? Die Hard accounts for it; this film does not address it. — Bill Simmons
  • Recapped nits: the Secret Service at the balcony haircut, the working boilers (which even Bay admitted was ridiculous), and Connery remembering the basement 30-plus years later. — Bill Simmons
  • There is no reason for Cage to take the green egg into a fight in his chest pocket; he lands on it and it stays intact, and shoving it in a mouth should fail, though it is still enjoyed. — Bill Simmons
  • Major nit: Cage's resistance to atropine; its listed side effects (light sensitivity, blurred vision, dry mouth, constipation and more) are mild compared with VX gas, so taking five shots would make sense. — Chris Ryan
  • The government should just pay the $83 million, roughly what Barry Bond signed for in 1996, rather than put San Francisco at risk. — Mina Kimes
  • Leaving the one man who can stop the mission alone in a cell, unguarded despite 30 men and stray Marines around Alcatraz, is illogical. — Mina Kimes
  • Connery would miss some of his rope-and-hook throws to pull the doors; he would win an Olympic event for it. — Bill Simmons
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1:01:15

Casting What-Ifs

Arnold Schwarzenegger as John Patrick Mason; Tony Scott as director

Arnold Schwarzenegger as John Patrick Mason; Tony Scott as director

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:15Read transcript
  • Schwarzenegger was offered the part of John Patrick Mason and said in a Reddit AMA he regrets not taking it; relief is expressed that he did not.
  • Tony Scott was supposed to direct but turned it down and did The Fan; a Scott version would be tighter but lose the over-the-top layer, including the air conditioner falling on the guy's head.
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1:09:19

Recasting Couch

Ving Rhames; Phil Hartman as the Alcatraz guide; Delroy Lindo; John Cusack; Danny Trejo; Josh Hamilton as White House...

Ving Rhames; Phil Hartman as the Alcatraz guide; Delroy Lindo; John Cusack; Danny Trejo; Josh Hamilton as White House Chief of Staff

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:09:19Read transcript
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1:26:27

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Mason as James Bond; the Led Zeppelin concert; Goodspeed's apartment; atropine's success rate

Mason as James Bond; the Led Zeppelin concert; Goodspeed's apartment; atropine's success rate

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:26:27Read transcript
  • The James Bond theory is debunked: he would have been 83, and Bond served in the British Navy, though an online fan hive persists. — Bill Simmons
  • Why was Mason's first stop after escaping a Led Zeppelin concert where he fathered Jade Angelo, and why that name?
  • More a nit: how does scientist Goodspeed afford the sickest apartment in D.C., a Friends-level loft?
  • Is atropine a 100 or 80 percent success, and what about missing the heart? A Chargers doctor punctured a quarterback's lung. — Bill Simmons
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Mentions across The Rewatchables

Recorded movie reference

Speed

The Rewatchables · aired August 18, 2026

The Rock is listed in the sourced research for this episode. The precise discussion has not been linked yet.

Transcript time unavailableRead transcript
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