Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson took real punches while filming his latest film, The Smashing Machine, which is prompting chats of an Oscar nomination.
The biographical sports film follows the life of former MMA fighter Mark Kerr from 1997-2000, at the peak of his combat fighting career.
Played by Johnson, we see Kerr putting himself through just about everything to prepare himself to fight in the often blood-filled match-ups in the ring or the octagon.
The UFC we know today is very different to how it was when it was rising to popularity around 20 years ago, when the likes of Kerr and Mark Coleman were around.
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Despite needing to put on 30lbs in what the wrestling star called a 'hard' and 'challenging' journey to look like the pioneering fighter did at the time, the role is different to anything else Johnson has done before.
Playing Kerr was more dramatic, touching on more serious subject matters compared to his past roles in Jumanji and the Fast and Furious franchise.
Johnson committed to the role, even physically being hit in fighting scenes to make it as authentic as possible.
Director Benny Safdie explained to the New York Post: “At one point, I said to Dwayne, ‘I don’t want to cut away. I think it’s important that we see him get hit.'
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“We talked about this early on, the one moment when he was actually going to get punched in the face.”
Safdie recalled: “Dwayne said to the [stuntman playing the opposing] fighter, ‘Yoko, you’ve got to hit me.’ Yoko was, like, ‘I’m sorry, sir. I’m not going to do that.’
"Dwayne said, ‘You have to. You know [where to hit me] to not break my jaw or kill me. Give it to me!'”
At that point, explained Safdie, “He gets hit in the head for real. It doesn’t look the way a fake punch would look."
Speaking on the WWE legend's impressive body transformation, he said that there were times in the film where 'he was acting with his back'.
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“Dwayne is a big guy, and Mark is a bigger guy. So, I told Dwayne that he needs to get puffier," the director explained, as the star asked for just four months before reaching the desired weight and size for the role.
"And he changed his body based on the fights he was having," Safdie added.
Emily Blunt also stars in the film, playing Kerr's then-girlfriend Dawn Staples, as we see their relationship being strained by the fighter's addiction to opioids.
The film depicts Kerr overdosing at least once, though it also reveals that the former wrestler went to rehab and tackled his addiction, as Kerr is currently clean.
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Despite starting his career with an 11-0 record, he retired in 2009 with a record of 15-11, later venturing into a career of selling cars after getting his real estate license.
The Smashing Machine has been rated highly so far, getting a 15-minute round of applause at the Venice Film Festival, with Johnson's performance praised.
Topics: Dwayne Johnson, Film, Celebrity, Sport
Joshua Nair