20 years ago, The Scorpion King predicted everything about modern blockbusters

polygon.com:

In the opening sequence of The Scorpion King, a Bronze Age barbarian camp celebrates the capture of Jesup (Branscombe Richmond), one of the last survivors of the rival Akkadian tribe. Flagons are hoisted. Filthy, battle-hardened men cheer. Half-nude women pose like they’re sitting for Frank Frazetta portraits. Just before the barbarian chieftain can execute his prisoner, an interloper crashes into the scene, setting up the film’s first big action setpiece. The intruder is Jesup’s half-brother, Mathayus (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson), whose chiseled, 6-foot-5 frame is lit and framed for maximum ogling potential. His first line, given to a roomful of startled warriors and their party guests: “Boo.” A melee ensues, a star is born — and so is the modern blockbuster. No one knew it at the time, but The Scorpion King was strangely prescient. Seen today, it looks like an early example of the movies dominating the box office.

Twenty years ago, when The Scorpion King hit theaters, Johnson was perhaps the most recognizable professional wrestler in the world, a multi-time WWF champion with enough mainstream star power to host Saturday Night Live. But he wasn’t a movie actor yet. His first film role was as Mathayus in 2001’s The Mummy Returns, where he gives a wordless performance that’s mostly buried under layers of hideous, PlayStation 2-cutscene-style CGI. In The Scorpion King, he reprises that role. But except for a few clumsy bits of dialogue about how “the blood of the scorpion will always flow in his veins,” this version of Mathayus stands alone.

“The Rock has the authority to play the role and the fortitude to keep a straight face,” Roger Ebert wrote in his three-star review of the film. “I expect him to become a durable