Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino Says His 'Jersey Shore' Character Was Based on The Rock

And unlike many reality stars, the Jersey Shore cast has hung around. That includes Mike Sorrentino, the well-bronzed party boy who coined one of the decades least likely catchphrases in GTLdistilling his daily routine of (yes) gym, tanning, and laundry. He also dubbed himself The Situation, speaking in the third person and taking every opportunity to draw attention to his toned abs .

Like most of The Jersey Shore, Sorrentinos character was both compelling and ridiculous. And, as you might have suspected, that was at least partly intentional. Appearing on the with Dax Holt and Adam Glyn, The Situation took a question about whether hed created a persona for the show. Lo and behold, he had, and revealed hed wanted to establish a larger-than-life character. His inspiration? Dwayne The Rock Johnson.

"When I went on Jersey Shore, I wanted to bring something new and I was a big fan of wrestling and of The Rock at that particular time period and a larger than life character," Sorrentino said. "I used my own personality and amped it up and made it third-person. I gave it a nickname and I had different sayings that I would say over and over."

From The Rock to The Situation doesnt seem like a long journey, and Sorrentino said he consciously tried to bring that sense of outlandishness to the screen; you could even argue he played the heel in The Jersey Shore. Sorrentino says he even ran into The Rock soon after the shows premiere, earning some compliments from the mega-starwho didnt even know hed been the inspiration for The Situation.