Good evening, everyone. I'm Scott Feinberg, the Hollywood Reporter's Executive Editor of Awards coverage and a trustee professor here at Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Media Arts.

Tonight, it is my great privilege and pleasure to welcome to campus for a masterclass

that is also being recorded for THR's Awards Chatter podcast, a wrestler turned actor, producer,

businessman and philanthropist who is now, in more ways than one, the biggest movie star

in the world.

This 53-year-old has been described by the Los Angeles Times

as one of the most famous, most likable, most followed, and therefore most bankable people

on the planet, close quote. Indeed, Forbes identified him as the top grossing actor in the world

in 2013, 2019, 2020, 2020, and 2024.

He is also the fifth highest grossing actor of all time.

The 40 films in which he has starred have collectively taken in more than $14 billion worldwide,

or an average of $349.7 million.

And within the last year, he has had two movies open

at number one at the box office in the same calendar month,

something that no other actor or actress

had achieved in the last 27 years.

It's hard to think of anyone in the world,

let alone in Hollywood, who is as universally loved as he is.

He has been selected by People Magazine as the sexiest man alive.

He has been identified by Time Magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world twice.

And he is presently the fifth most followed person in the world on Instagram with 392 billion followers

multiples more than the president of the United States, the king of England, or the Pope.

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