Is The Rock's 'San Andreas' Character Real?

All of this talk about extreme natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis has me a little bit shaken, and for that I have two things to blame: a more ferocious than normal spring, and the upcoming Hollywood disaster film San Andreas , starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Carla Gugino and Alexandra Daddario. Apparently, the weather paranoia induced by the previews of San Andreas stretches far beyond the confines of my city and on to the world in general, because there have been so many questions about the film, which hit theaters May 29. Obviously, people want to know whether San Andreas is more fiction than fact, and even more are suddenly inclined to make sure they can locate the San Andreas fault on a map. Luckily, though, there's another burning question that will shift the focus away from terrifying weather events: Is The Rock's San Andreas character a real person?

It's a fair question to wonder: Considering the fact that the film is based on a disaster that could technically happen in real-life — there have been reports for decades that a major earthquake, or "The Big One," on the San Andreas fault line in Southern California could be catastrophic — it wouldn't be a stretch to wonder if Johnson's character in the film was inspired by a real person. (One thing's for sure: If Johnson's character is inspired by a real someone, that individual would have enough material to pen one hell of a memoir.)

However, as with most things in life, it doesn't look as if the answer is as simple as asking the question itself. Unfortunately, the film isn't based on a tell-all about up close and personal death-defying experiences, because the character Ray — aka, the Los Angeles Fire Department Air Squadron Rescue helicopter pilot that Johnson plays in the film — is purely fictional.

That doesn't mean Ray wasn't without inspiration, though: Rest assured that prior to San Andreas, Johnson didn't dive into all of these action-packed, life-saving adventures without the proper training. According to Johnson himself, in preparation for his role in San Andreas, he shadowed LAFD firefighters who actually do the work of his character on a day-to-day basis.

Now here's the only remaining question: Did The Rock play a convincing rescue pilot? Catch a glimpse of him in action in the latest trailer from San Andreasbefore seeing the film in theaters.

Images: Warner Bros.; Getty Images