Dwayne Johnson dishes on playing dramatic role in ‘The Smashing Machine’

For Dwayne Johnson, playing mixed martial arts fighter Mark Kerr in The Smashing Machine has been a career-defining role.

In an interview published on Sunday, Sept. 21, The Rock spoke with CBS News about his new role in what is probably the most ambitious film of his career.

Johnson has never played anyone so close to real life before, but he has been craving such a role for a long time.

"For years, I've been dreaming and hoping," he said. "My desire was to play not only a dramatic role, but something that I felt I could really sink my teeth into and rip myself open. You hear that term. I just didn't want to do drama. I wanted to do something that really allowed me to do that."

Johnson plays real-life mixed martial arts fighter Kerr, a two-time world champion who battled drug addiction and depression.

The Fast & Furious star’s dedication to his new movie is shown by his endurance of three hours of makeup and prosthetics each day to look like Kerr.

The Smashing Machine, which debuted at the Venice Film Festival last month, is set to hit U.S. theatres on October 3, 2025.

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