VENICE,Italy (AP) – Dwayne “The Rock” โคJohnson has undergone a dramatic physical and emotional transformation to โportray UFC heavyweight champion Mark Kerr in the film “The โฃSmashing Machine,” โcurrently โขcompeting for โtop honors at the 2025 Venice Film Festival. The film, directed by Josh and Benny Safdie, โคis generatingโ critically important buzz for its raw โand empathetic depiction of Kerr’s rise and struggles โwith addiction.
“The Smashing machine” is vying for the festival’s prestigious Golden Lion alongside films likeโค “Frankenstein,” “Bugonia,” “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” “Laโ Grazia,” and “No โฃOther Choice.” The Venice Film Festival servesโ as a crucial launchpad for potential Oscar โcontenders, and โthe film’s reception could considerably โimpact โขJohnson’s career trajectoryโ beyond his established action-star persona. Winners,includingโ those in acting and directing categories,will be revealed on September 6.
According to the Safdie brothers,the โfilm’s title is “a perfect onomatopoeiaโ for somethingโค visual,conjuring โimages ofโ domination and destruction with โคease.”โ Theyโ emphasized thier commitment โคto authentically portraying Kerr and his partner, Dawn Staples, โคstating, “Dwayne, Emilyโข and โI kept thought ‘what is it like to reallyโฃ be Mark Kerr, โwhat is it like to really be Dawn Staples?’ we wanted to empathize withโค thes characters in a way that โfelt like ourโข own โfeelingsโฆ I wanted this โคmovie to exist โas a memory for โeveryone who watches it.”
“The Smashing Machine” is scheduled for aโ North โคAmerican theatrical release onโฃ October 3. Further โคcoverage of the 2025 โVenice Film Festival can be found at https://apnews.com/hub/venice-film-festival.
Brendan Fraser in Rental Family” class=”wp-image-1235120836″ srcset=”https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/JKELLY_20240528_16696r.jpg?w=300&h=168&crop=1&resize=600%2C337 600w,https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/JKELLY_20240528_16696r.jpg?w=300&h=168&crop=1&resize=125%2C70 125w, https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/JKELLY_20240528_16696r.jpg?w=300&h=168&crop=1&resize=660%2C370 660w, https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/JKELLY_20240528_16696r.jpg?w=300&h=168&crop=1&resize=50%2C28 50w, https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/JKELLY_20240528_16696r.jpg?w=300&h=168&crop=1&resize=300%2C168 300w, https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/JKELLY_20240528_16696r.jpg?w=300&h=168&crop=1&resize=1200%2C675 1200w” sizes=”auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px” loading=”lazy” decoding=”async” fetchpriority=”auto” data-attachment-id=”1235120836″ data-wp-size=”nova_size__sixteenbynine_small_cropped”>