The Smashing Machine has released its first-look image, and Dwayne Johnson is unrecognisable in his role.
The biographical sports drama, which is being directed by Benny Safdie, sees The Rock play Mark Kerr, a former wrestler and mixed martial artist who battled addiction throughout his career.
The first image of the upcoming film was released by distributor A24, showcasing Johnson in character as he rests in the corner of the ring. Emily Blunt, who plays Mark’s girlfriend Dawn Staples, can also be seen at the bottom of the image outside of the ring.
Though Johnson may be accustomed to the fighting ring given his time with the WWE, the actor looks unrecognisable in the role, with one fan commenting on X/Twitter: “Didn’t even recognize him and Emily Blunt looks like she time travelled in 2006.”
“Unrecognizable. FINALLY. The Rock is bouta tap back into his Pain & Gain days. That’s probably his Best Role to date, until this comes out,” wrote another fan, whilst one confused user asked: “Which one is the rock?”
Whilst it will be a while before The Smashing Machine is released, Johnson will be heard in the upcoming Moana 2, with the star reprising his role as Maui alongside Auli’i Cravalho, who plays the titular character.
Johnson will also star in the live-action remake of the original film, and recently offered an update on its progress, revealing that they had found a newcomer to replace Cravalho in the now iconic role.
“One of the exciting things about that was actually finding our Moana and how exciting that has been,” he said. “The global search to find our Moana, which – between you and I, we found her – not gonna tell you yet. [It’s] very exciting. The scale [of the Moana remake] should be beautiful.”
There is no release date for The Smashing Machine. Moana 2 is scheduled to be released on November 27.