Overview

• Benny Safdie won the Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival for The Smashing Machine.
• Early festival reactions praised Dwayne Johnson’s unrecognizable turn as Mark Kerr, with reports that the response moved him to tears.
• Johnson embraced prosthetics, a reworked voice, and added weight to portray the MMA star, marking a deliberate shift toward character-driven drama.
• The film centers on Kerr’s career and personal struggles, with Emily Blunt portraying his partner, Dawn Staples.
• Safdie boosted promotion with a viral New York City subway stunt by wearing the film’s poster, while interviews recounted Johnson’s past talks with Ken Shamrock and early discussions with Kerr dating to 2019.