Dany Garcia and Dwayne Johnson have redefined post-divorce relationships, transitioning from college sweethearts to co-founders of Seven Bucks Productions, a media empire that grossed $4.6 billion at the worldwide box office by 2023. Garcia, born 29 November 1968, and Johnson, born 2 May 1972, married on 3 May 1997 and divorced in 2008, yet they continue to co-run their production company, with Garcia serving as Johnson's manager and Global Strategic Advisor for all his business ventures.
How They Met and Married
The pair met at the University of Miami in the early 1990s, where Johnson arrived on a football scholarship and Garcia pursued a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in International Marketing and Finance, which she completed in 1992. They shared interests in sports, business, and entertainment, and after dating for several years, they married in May 1997.
Both were competitive athletes with ambitions beyond campus life. Garcia competes as a professional IFBB Pro Women's Physique Bodybuilder, while Johnson was beginning to establish himself in professional wrestling. The name Seven Bucks Productions references the seven dollars Johnson had in his pocket after being released from the CFL in 1995, before he signed with WWE in 1996—a detail Garcia uses to frame their shared philosophy of building from nothing.
Their Daughter and the Split
The couple had one child together, Simone Alexandra Johnson, born on 14 August 2001. Simone became a professional WWE wrestler, performing under the ring names Ava and Ava Raine, and served as the on-screen general manager of the NXT brand. Speaking on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in 2020 about Simone signing with WWE at age 18, Johnson said: "First of all, what an honour that my daughter wants to follow in my footsteps—but she actually wants to create and blaze her own path." He added: "She wound up being the youngest signee in the history of the company."
On 1 June 2007, Johnson and Garcia announced they were separating amicably, realising their relationship was evolving after about six years following Simone's birth. The divorce was finalised in May 2008. Johnson later acknowledged his struggles during the marriage, telling CNN in 2011: "I don't quite know what my expectation of marriage was back then. I had made a lot of mistakes, and I didn't have the ability or the wherewithal or the capacity to stop for a moment and say, 'God, I'm really screwing up.'" Reflecting on the divorce's emotional toll during his November 2025 appearance on The Hollywood Reporter's Awards Chatter podcast, he said: "When you guys get married, as a few of you may know, you sign up for the long haul, but then it doesn't always work out like that. And then it rocks you like it rocked me."
Building a Business Empire Together
Despite the divorce, Johnson and Garcia maintained a strong friendship and working relationship. Garcia married Dave Rienzi in March 2014—Rienzi is Johnson's strength and conditioning coach. Johnson explained their post-divorce partnership during an interview with Sway's Universe: "While marriage wasn't in our cards, we did realize, 'Well, wait a second, we're building something that's pretty cool. Marriage may not be in our cards but building business can be.' And that took time."
In 2008, Garcia began managing Johnson's career and still holds that role more than 17 years later. Seven Bucks Productions, co-founded by Garcia and Johnson in 2012, produces films including Baywatch (2017), Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017), Hobbs & Shaw (2019), Jungle Cruise (2021), Red Notice (2021), and Black Adam (2022). Garcia also serves as CEO and chair of The Garcia Companies, overseeing brands in business, entertainment, and food, and founded GSTQ, whose portfolio includes Teremana Tequila, Athleticon, the Project Rock Collection at Under Armour, VOSS, Atom Tickets, Salt & Straw, ZOA Energy, Acorns, and the UFL.
In 2020, Garcia made history as the first woman to co-own an entire professional sports league when she and Johnson acquired the XFL. In 2023, she spearheaded its merger with the United States Football League to form the United Football League (UFL). She has appeared on Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100, Variety's 500 Most Important People in Global Media, and Entrepreneur's Women of Influence.
Recent Developments and Net Worth
In February 2025, 20th Television closed a first-look TV deal with Seven Bucks Productions, bringing the label fully under the Walt Disney Co. umbrella after a previous first-look film deal signed in June 2024. Under the Disney film deal, Seven Bucks is producing a live-action remake of Moana, with Johnson playing Maui, and a live-action film set in the world of motorsports, Monster Jam. A new crime thriller series, Dive, is in development at ABC in partnership with 20th Television and Seven Bucks Productions, masterminded by Jack Ryan and Halo showrunner Steven Kane and set in New Orleans.
Seven Bucks Productions also announced a feature documentary on two-time Olympic gold medallist Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, titled Undeniable: Portia Woodman, directed by New Zealand filmmaker Zoë McIntosh. Garcia said via RugbyPass: "Rugby is built on legacy, identity, resilience and pride, which are exactly the kinds of stories we want to bring to audiences at Seven Bucks Productions."
Conservative estimates by outlets like Celebrity Net Worth place Garcia's net worth at approximately $40 million, though industry analysts suggest her overall business portfolio is worth significantly more. Her income sources include film and television production revenues via Seven Bucks Productions, talent management through The Garcia Companies, sports enterprise ownership of the UFL, brand stakes in Teremana Tequila, GSTQ, ZOA Energy, VOSS, and Acorns, and her early finance career as a former Associate Vice President at Merrill Lynch. Garcia also serves on the University of Miami Board of Trustees, and her journey with Johnson demonstrates how a relationship can evolve long after a marriage ends, turning a personal chapter into a lasting professional legacy.
