Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is facing what could be his most violent smackdown yet: the Oscar race.
The first trailer for the highly anticipated The Smashing Machine, a biographical sports drama from buzzy studio A24 about mixed martial artists and UFC champion Mark Kerr (Johnson). Without a doubt, it’s the star’s most serious attempt yet to get awards attention for his acting chops. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Academy Award nominee? Stranger things have happened.
The film follows Kerr as he fights to the top of the MMA world while slowly becoming consumed by a painkiller addiction and a fraught relationship with his girlfriend, Dawn Staples (Emily Blunt).
“You’re probably looking at my eyes,” a black-and-blue Kerr says in the trailer to an older woman, while they sit in the waiting room of a doctor’s office.
“H-how did that happen?” she asks him. The camera cuts to show Kerr fighting in the ring, closing in on his fists as he smashes them against the other fighter’s head, beating him over and over again.
Co-written by Kerr and Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems), who also serves as director, the film stars Paul Lazenby, Marcus Aurelio, Whitney Moore, and Bas Rutten.
Given his propensity for huge blockbuster franchises like Moana and Fast and Furious, this film marks a significant career shift for Johnson. He is practically unrecognizable in the trailer, sporting a full head of hair and facial prosthetics to help him transform into the UFC champion, and speaks with a distinctly mid-Western accent.
“Congrats on The Rock’s acting debut, a YouTuber commented, joking about how this will be the first “real” film of Johnson’s career.
Johnson previously told Variety, “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.”
Since 2000, more than half of Oscar winners in the Best Acting categories won for playing biographical roles. Does this mean The Rock could finally snag the much-prized Golden trophy?
Everyone will just have to wait until The Smashing Machine hits theaters on Oct. 3 to find out if he truly has what it takes to survive the Hollywood prestige ring.
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