Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson looked unrecognizable in the first image from his upcoming film The Smashing Machine, which is A24’s 2025 biopic about retired mixed martial arts artist Mark Kerr.
At 52, the half-Samoan, quarter-black actor will have a tougher time playing the half-Irish, half-Puerto Rican wrestler, who was in his 20s and 30s in the late ’90s and early ’90s when he became a two-time champion. UFC Heavyweight Tournament Champion.
Dwayne was rejuvenated and transformed by two-time Oscar winner Kazu Hiro, the same prosthetic makeup designer who transformed Bradley Cooper in Maestro (2023), Charlize Theron in Bombshell (2019), and Gary Oldman in Darkest Hour (2017). .
‘Give the award to the makeup team now,’ Instagram user @brandondavisbd commented in the image.
Instagram user @blizzchaiii agreed: “The makeup team went crazy.”
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson looked unrecognizable in the first image from his upcoming film The Smashing Machine, which is A24’s 2025 biopic about retired mixed martial arts artist Mark Kerr.
At 52, the half-Samoan, quarter-black actor will have a tougher time playing the half-Irish, half-Puerto Rican wrestler (pictured in 1997), who was in his 20s and 30s in the late ’90s and early ’90s when became a two-time UFC heavyweight tournament champion
‘Is that you, Rock? Good job by the prosthetics and makeup team,’ commented Instagram user @steve_cusumano.
Instagram user @caesarpf_ exclaimed: ‘WTFFFF The Rock with haiirrr!’
Mark, now 55, has been helping Johnson, a third-generation WWE wrestler, prepare to portray him more authentically by accompanying him at his MMA training camp, where he has been “a total student of the game, absorbing and learning everything I can. , day to day.’
“(Kerr) is still a damn machine, who can close distances with terrifying speed and power,” said the Fast X action star, who has 559.8 million followers on social media. wrote on Tuesday.
‘I will always be deeply grateful for the invaluable knowledge you have been kind enough to pass on to me and especially for the brotherhood we share. Facing Mark and feeling the pressure and power from him: it’s no surprise that he was an NCAA, UFC, and VALE TUDO heavyweight champion.
‘That’s the A side of success. Side B tells a different story. Thank you all for all your incredible support throughout this intense process and journey. Production begins filming this week.’
Principal photography officially began on Tuesday and the film will shoot in Vancouver, Los Angeles, New Mexico and Tokyo.
Dwayne has received five months of training since signing on to produce and star in The Smashing Machine, which marks the solo directorial debut of three-time Independent Spirit Award-winning filmmaker Benny Safdie.
Dwayne was rejuvenated and transformed by two-time Oscar winner Kazu Hiro (left, pictured in 2022), the same prosthetic makeup designer who transformed Bradley Cooper in Maestro (2023), Charlize Theron in Bombshell (2019) and Gary. Oldman in the Darkest Hour (2017)
People marveled at her transformation in the Instagram comments and praised the makeup team.
Mark (R), now 55, has been helping Johnson, a third-generation WWE wrestler, prepare to portray him more authentically by accompanying him at his MMA training camp, where he has been “a total student of the game, absorbing and learning so much. how can I, day by day’
Action star Fast
Dwayne continued: ‘I will always be deeply grateful for the invaluable knowledge you have graciously passed on to me and especially for the brotherhood we share. Facing Mark and feeling the pressure and power from him: it’s no surprise that he was an NCAA, UFC, and VALE TUDO heavyweight champion.
Johnson added: “That’s the A side of success.” Side B tells a different story. Thank you all for all your incredible support throughout this intense process and journey. Production begins filming this week’
Principal photography officially began on Tuesday and the film will shoot in Vancouver, Los Angeles, New Mexico and Tokyo.
Dwayne has had five months of training since signing on to produce and star in The Smashing Machine, which marks the solo directorial debut of three-time Independent Spirit Award-winning filmmaker Benny Safdie (right, pictured last Wednesday).
The new image also includes a first look at Oscar nominee Emily Blunt (L), who co-starred with Johnson in Jungle Cruise, as Dawn Staples (R), an Arizona-based recovering alcoholic who married Mark in Las Vegas during their sometimes violent relationship. Romance
The Smashing Machine, also starring Lyndsey Gavin, Oleksandr Usyk and Ryan Bader, is based on John Hyams’ 2002 HBO documentary of the same name, which also captured Kerr’s substance abuse, 1999 hospitalization and rehabilitation period, in addition to his general career.
The new image also included a first look at Oscar nominee Emily Blunt, who co-starred with Johnson in Jungle Cruise, as Dawn Staples, a recovering alcoholic living in Arizona who married Mark in Las Vegas during their sometimes-romance. violent.
The Smashing Machine, also starring Lyndsey Gavin, Oleksandr Usyk and Ryan Bader, is based on John Hyams’ 2002 HBO documentary of the same name, which also captured Kerr’s substance abuse, her 1999 hospitalization and her period of rehabilitation as well. of his career in general.
But first, the Young Rock co-creator produces and stars as Callum Drift in Jake Kasdan’s $250m-budgeted Christmas action film Red One, which hits US and UK cinemas on November 15, alongside Chris Evans, JK Simmons, Kiernan Shipka, Lucy Liu, Nick. Kroll and Bonnie Hunt.
Dwayne will next reprise his voice-over role as Maui in David G. Derrick Jr.’s Disney sequel, Moana 2, which hits US theaters on November 27.