Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is officially named People's Sexiest Man Alive for 2016

Published: 14:37 GMT, 15 November 2016 | Updated: 18:01 GMT, 15 November 2016

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Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson has been named People's Sexiest Man Alive.

The 44-year-old scoops the title from last year's winner David Beckham, and can be seen on the cover of the magazine's new issue.

The snapshot shows The Rock flexing his muscles on the beach while clad in a simple white T-shirt and jeans.

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'I'm honored and grateful': Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson shared his delight on Instagram on Tuesday after he was named People's Sexiest Man Alive for 2016

The actor and wrestler shared his delight at the news on Instagram on Tuesday.

'This just means I'm still up at 4am trainin' hard, takin' care of my babies, drivin' my pick up truck and tellin' a few dirty/nerdy jokes... extremely sexily of course,' he wrote.

'Huge THANK YOU you to the entire hard working and very cool staff at @People as well as all the fans worldwide. I'm honored and grateful for the luv!'

The San Andreas star added that to him, being sexy is about confidence.

Showing his silly side: The 44-year-old joked about reading 'the how to be sexy and a great kisser guide when I was 8'

Surprise!: The Rock appeared on Tuesday's episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show to discuss the exciting news

'Remember, sexy isn't something you "try and be". Sexy happens naturally when you're comfortable just being yourself,' he wrote.

'Trust me, I'm an expert at this. (plus I read the how to be sexy and a great kisser guide when I was 8). #SexiestManAlive.'

Rumours that The Rock would be taking the highly coveted title began swirling the previous evening.

The big reveal: The audience cheered as the actor and wrestler's cover was unveiled

Three decades strong: Sexiest Man Alive is in its 32nd year, and The Rock says sexiness is all about confidence

And the hunk told People how he reacted when he got the call to tell him he'd been named Sexiest Man Alive.

'I said, "That’s awesome." And then what went through my mind was just how cool and exciting it is,' he explained.

'And then I thought, "Wow, we’ve pretty much reached the pinnacle." I’m not quite too sure where we go from here. I’ve done it all, this is it.'

The Rock appeared on Tuesday's episode of Ellen to discuss the exciting news.

Check me out: The hunk looked delighted when he saw the giant blown-up version of his cover

Having a laugh: Ellen played a video which showed The Rock's road to sexiness, and he also discussed his children

'I think the transition's going to be easy, yes,' he told the comedian. 'I can tell you now that what this means is I still have to drive in my pickup truck and change Jasmine's diapers but now I'm just still the Sexiest Man Alive.'

People's Sexiest Man Alive is in its 32nd year.

The youngest person to ever take the title was John F. Kennedy, Jr. who was 27 when he was selected in 1988.

Busy star: He voices Maui in upcoming Disney movie Moana and can soon be seen in Fast 8 and Jumanji, among a host of other films

Big shoes to fill: The Rock is taking the title from David Beckham, who won last year

Sean Connery is the oldest person to be named Sexiest Man Alive. He was 59 when he won the title in 1989.

Only four people have been selected twice in the three decades since it began: Richard Gere, Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Johnny Depp.

Johnny was last named Sexiest Man Alive in 2009, and since then the winners have been Ryan Reynolds, Bradley Cooper, Channing Tatum, Adam Levine, Chris Hemsworth and David Beckham.