Overview

• At the Toronto Film Festival, Johnson said he is continuing to lose weight for Lizard Music, his next collaboration with director Benny Safdie.
• He will play a 70-year-old eccentric called “Chicken Man,” with Oscar winner Kazu Hiro reported to handle aging makeup for the role.
• Johnson appeared noticeably slimmer at Venice, where The Smashing Machine received an estimated 15-minute standing ovation and drew awards buzz.
• He has already shed much of the size he gained to portray MMA fighter Mark Kerr and said he still has “a long way to go.”
• He reiterated that he will keep making blockbusters, confirming a Jumanji 3 shoot with Kevin Hart starting in November as he promotes The Smashing Machine on the festival circuit.