Dwayne Johnson's new film The Smashing Machine will officially hit theaters tomorrow.
The film is an adaptation of the 2002 documentary The Smashing Machine: The Life and Times of Mark Kerr.
Mark Kerr, now 57, won two UFC Heavyweight Tournaments, competed in the PRIDE Fighting Championship, was a NCAA Division I champion and a World Vale Tudo Championship tournament winner over the course of his MMA career. The 2002 documentary was acclaimed at the time of its release:
Johnson announced he would be portraying Kerr back in November 2019, but the project was obviously delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Rock's production company Seven Bucks is producing. Emily Blunt, who worked with The Rock on Disney's Jungle Cruise portrays Kerr's wife, Dawn Staples. The film finished production in summer 2024.
Benny Safdie, who co-directed and co-wrote the great Adam Sandler crime thriller Uncut Gems, wrote the screenplay and directed The Smashing Machine.
The film is already accumulating Oscar buzz.
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