The Rock is considered to be stepping out of his comfort zone when devoting himself to “The Smashing Machine”, a biographical film about former UFC fighter Mark Kerr.
At the age of 52, The Rock is recognized as a successful wrestling star when he ventures into acting. However, his million-dollar salary mainly comes from commercial films with the same muscular roles and humorous personality.
This stereotype shows that amateurs follow a safe path and lack emphasis. His approach to cinema is completely different from Dave Bautista and his colleagues at WWE – who have been collaborating with “auteur” filmmakers (a group of directors with a special perspective).
According to The Things , The Rock’s stagnant career may be about to break through in the near future, when the movie The Smashing Machine is released. The newspaper wrote: “Through this film, he wants to get out of his comfort zone and prove that he invests in acting more than ever.”
Efforts for new movies
Two weeks ago, The Rock released the first look at The Smashing Machine . That is a man who is still muscular and muscular but attracts attention when wearing a wig and fake nails to look like UFC legend Mark Kerr. Additionally, he also had to cover up all his tattoos.
Most fans were surprised by this change when The Rock no longer looked like Dr. Smolder in Jumanji or Luke Hobbs in Fast & Furious . One account commented: “The audience is so familiar with The Rock’s bald head and witty expressions. I have never seen him so serious and seemingly so confidant.”
To prepare for The Smashing Machine , The Rock said he trained directly with Mark Kerr in an extremely harsh environment. The actor expressed his admiration when sharing photos taken with his seniors: “He is like a machine that can close the gap with opponents with terrifying speed and strength.”
Even though he has been going to the gym like crazy to become a true “muscular giant”, as Essentially Sports reported, for The Rock, the new workout program still overwhelms the actor because of its difficulty. He said this is “a new land that I have not yet explored”.
A series of behind-the-scenes photos shows The Rock wearing a tight tank-top while throwing powerful punches. He also improved his ability to attack opponents and use grappling moves under the direction of director Benny Safdie.
“This is my second training camp. As you know, I went into training camp for 12 weeks before WrestleMania and then I had to rest for 10 days before training again. Even though it’s hard right now “No matter what, I still appreciate all the support from everyone. I have a good background from professional wrestling, but this is a completely new world for me,” the actor shared.
He added: “I work hard but realize that I have to put in more effort than anything I’ve ever done in my life. Being physically fit is just part of the new journey, more important is the The whole group’s cooperation. Thank you everyone.”
” The Smashing Machine is raw but authentic”
The Things considers the collaboration between The Rock and A24 to be a wise decision because the studio based in New York (USA) is so famous for the biographical film genre.
Last year, A24 released the film The Iron Claw based on the legendary Von Erich family of the professional wrestling world. The work was praised by critics, contributing to bringing the career of male lead Zac Efron (as Kevin Von Erich) back to a brilliant trajectory.
Similar to The Iron Claw , the story in The Smashing Machine will revolve around the peaks to the disastrous depths of the professional wrestling legend. Mark Kerr, the main character of the film – through The Rock’s acting – is said to face many different emotions when witnessing his family being torn apart by tragedy.
“Mark Kerr’s life is extremely complicated. This man was addicted to painkillers in the early stages of participating in MMA matches. The role is quite heavy for The Rock. However, his cooperation with A24 promises promises to open up potential Oscar competition opportunities,” The Things commented.
In a previous interview, The Rock expressed his desire to participate in meaningful movies instead of just getting used to boring scenes of violence. When reading the script for The Smashing Machine , he was fascinated by the “raw but honest” details, a type of experience he had never tried.
“I’m at a stage where I have to push myself in unprecedented directions. My goal is to create films that matter, explore humanity, explore the inner self, the struggle of emotions and the pain from deep inside every person,” the actor expressed.
For The Rock, each stage is a challenge. The fact that he is trying to “transform” for a new film does not mean denying all his efforts or giving up on previous action films.
He emphasized: “I mean, I always hope to bring different values through each work. That’s why Benny Safdie is the perfect partner. Collaborating with him is always a desire.” To me”.
Although only in production, The Smashing Machi ne received many positive analyzes from experts. It’s still early to confirm anything about the movie, but fans expect The Rock to do great with this role.