Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and cast talk plaling with GI Joe dolls While not many people over the age of 10 will admit to talking to G.I. Joes, an exception was made on Thursday as four cast members of G.I. Joe: Retaliation, including Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, attended the film's Sydney premiere. Yet some in attendance were still reluctant to admit they played with the dolls as kids. "Well, you gotta tell those guys, 'Brother, it ain't the dolls that are going to make you less manly'," Johnson said. I did. When I was a kid it was all about G.I. Joe and Star Wars for me. In fact Johnson describes his call up to this second G.I. Joe movie, in which he takes on the leadership of the G.I. Joes, as the equivalent of getting a tap on the shoulder from George Lucas. Jon M. Chu, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, Adrianne Palicki, DJ Cotrona and Lee Byung-Hun at the Australian premiere of G.I.Joe: Retaliation. Photo: Lisa Maree Williams Now, with a new Star Wars film gearing up under the direction of J.J. Abrams, Johnson is after a role in his other childhood playground. "I'm gonna call J.J.!" he declared on Thursday, "I'm gonna be in Star Wars." Until then, he can be seen sharing the screen with action stars Channing Tatum, Bruce Willis and Korean star Byung-Hun Lee trying to enliven the cinematic brand that was left tarnished after the critically-derided but financially successful first film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. Johnson and Tatum both admit there were flaws in the first movie, which they hope to overcome with this film. "The first G.I. Joe did pretty good," said Johnson, "and a lot of people liked it around the world, [but] we all collectively thought there was something better that we could make to try and elevate the movie." Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson stars in G.I. Joe: Retaliation. So, on a testosterone-charged set, who gets top-dog status? The Die Hard star. "I've grown up watching Bruce Willis movies and he's a huge action star," said Lee. That was an amazing experience and a tremendous honour. So fun. "I humbly open up for Bruce Willis: you are the man," said Johnson. Going into this, Bruce wanted to take the role because he then is Joe Coulton, the whole reason we're called G.I. Joes. [Yet] very early on, he was adamant 'this is Dwayne's movie, I want everyone to know that'. Because of his, just, coolness that way, humility: Bruce, this is your set. D.J. Cotrona, who plays Flint, said he also respected Lee and his fellow martial artists. We all trained ourselves to death, but the ninjas would go home injured and just go to sleep, and we all went out in New Orleans and just drank. Adrianne Palicki, who plays Lady Jaye, is more interested in the other end of the pecking order. She hints that Cotrona took more than his share of hits from Johnson. "He used to beat the crap out of him," she said, in jest. "Yeah, but that was just for everyone else's benefit," Cotrona responded. Then we would get together for long serious talks and he would tear up a bit. "He is a cryer," Palicki said of her famous co-star. It's not hard. Just talk about puppies and rainbows ... ..." moonbeams," Cotrona suggested. Savage Garden - his favourite band. Some Enya or Savage Garden; he'll go to a different place. Johnson admitted he explores his sensitive side, a bit, for his acting, but doesn't draw on real life for his on-screen emotions. I don't necessarily have to think about - nor do I want to think about - the bad things that have happened, the painful things that have happened. Because shit, I've lived it! I don't want to live it again! I can appreciate it and embrace it. I think whatever the scene calls for, you've got to tap into that. As far as my co-stars saying I was a cry-baby. I'm sure DJ Catrona said something. I did tear up - every time he would come around, I would tear up. Because he has halitosis. Chronic. G.I. Joe: Retaliation will be in cinemas on March 28