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Emily Blunt is full of praise for her friend and co-star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s performance in the upcoming Benny Safdie-directed film The Smashing Machine. Set up at A24, The Smashing Machine is set to be The Rock’s first “serious” dramatic role in over a decade.
If you look through The Rock’s filmography, he hasn’t starred in a movie that’s not an action, comedy, or blockbuster since Michael Bay’s Pain & Gain in 2013 (not counting Moana and him playing himself in Fighting with My Family).
Based on everything that’s been reported about the project, The Smashing Machine, a biopic about MMA fighter Mark Kerr, is set to be a stone-cold dramatic film, and according to Blunt, The Rock nails it and is going to blow people away.
“Dwayne is someone who, as you know – not only because of his colossal size, but just who he is – has never really been allowed to disappear, and he is unrecognizable in this,” Blunt said at the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Thursday, December 5, according to Variety.
“And it’s an incredibly intense film – yes, centered around the life of this real life MMA fighter Mark Kerr – all of his struggles with addictions, his relationships. It was, again, an incredibly immersive, very intense, very emotional experience to do it, and he is extraordinary in it.”
“I love him so much, and we had the best time on Jungle Cruise. We knew we wanted to do something else together. I don’t think either of us knew it would be a departure like The Smashing Machine, which I can’t wait for people to see.”
First look at Benny Safdie’s THE SMASHING MACHINE starring @TheRock and Emily Blunt. pic.twitter.com/GVC2XIHwGV
— A24 (@A24) May 21, 2024
Kerr, a two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion and one of the first notable fighters the company produced, made his UFC debut at UFC 14 in Birmingham, Alabama on July 27, 1997. In addition to his success with the UFC, Kerr, now 55 years old, was also an NCAA Division 1 champion in wrestling, and a gold and silver medalist at the Wrestling World Cup.
Emily Blunt and Johnson previously starred in the Disney film Jungle Cruise, based on the long-running ride at their theme park. Released in 2021, the film was neither a commercial nor a critical success, meaning a sequel is unlikely.
The duo obviously became quite close during the production of the film, however, as their chemistry on the press tour was undeniably infectious and have signed on to work together again on The Smashing Machine, with Blunt being full of praise for her scene partner.
When The Smashing Machine was announced, A24 said Johnson and director Benny Safdie’s vision for Mark Kerr’s story is “electrifying” (The Rock used to call himself “the most electrifying man in sports entertainment, by the way).
“Dwayne and Benny are singular talents, and their shared vision for Mark’s inspiring story is electrifying. We are deeply honored to have their trust as collaborators in bringing this incredibly special project to life,” A24 said in a statement.
In his own official statement, Johnson perhaps acknowledged that he’s waded too far into mindless franchise fare in recent years, saying that he’s now at a stage in his career where he “wants to make films that matter.
“I’m at a point in my career where I want to push myself in ways that I’ve not pushed myself in the past. I’m at a point in my career where I want to make films that matter, that explore a humanity and explore struggle [and] pain,” The Rock said of the film when it was announced.
The Smashing Machine is Benny Safdie’s solo directorial debut, as he previously directed Good Time and Uncut Gems with his brother Josh. Safdie is also an actor whose recent projects include Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Nathan Fielder’s Showtime series The Curse.
Alongside Johnson and Blunt, The Smashing Machine will also star Lyndsey Gavin, Oleksandr Usyk, Bas Rutten (as himself), Ryan Bader, Satoshi Ishii, James Moontasri, Cyborg Abreu, Andre Tricoteux, and more.
You can check out a video of The Rock training for the film below.