Why The Rock was left in tears after 15-minute ovation for new biopic with 100% Rotten Tomatoes score

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was left in tears after being given a 15-minute ovation for his newest film at the Venice Film Festival.

Johnson is starring in his first indie film in years, in which he plays ex-UFC fighter Mark Kerr in a biopic.

Debuting at Venice, the film got a raucous response, including a perfect 100 per cent Rotten Tomatoes score alongside a Metacritic score of 75.

During the 15-minute ovation, the film's reception brought both The Rock and director Benny Safdie to tears.

Called The Smashing Machine, Johnson stars as Kerr alongside Emily Blunt and has been touted as a possible Oscar nominee for the role, as well as making headlines for his body transformation.

Many may be wondering, however, why the often stoic Dwayne Johnson was brought to tears by the festival ovation after he recently made a devastating admission about his family.

What Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has said about taking role in The Smashing Machine

In the press conference for the film, Johnson was asked about why he took the role, and said he was looking to take ‘deep and intense and raw’ roles after years chasing box office numbers.

He said that in Hollywood, ‘you chase the box office, and the box office can be very loud and it can become very resounding and it can push you into a category and into a corner’.

The Rock went on to add: “I looked around a few years ago and I started to think, you know, am I living my dream or am I living other people’s dreams?”

This role was a leap outside of his comfort zone and the first of his new attempt to ‘live his dream’, so the massively positive response made him emotional, which should not be a surprise.

The Smashing Machine’s 15-minute standing ovation is a huge deal for The Rock

Dwayne Johnson cries during the 15-minute standing ovation for his new movie ‘THE SMASHING MACHINE’

Read our review: https://t.co/ejtQIs1Usz pic.twitter.com/17pQYebeat

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) September 1, 2025

The other reason he was likely to have been left emotional is the impressive nature of a 15-minute standing ovation at film festivals.

When it has become commonplace for movies to have extremely long celebratory applause, it is hard to judge what is and isn’t a positive response.

When you compare The Smashing Machine to its peers, however, the response places it amongst classic movies.

15 minutes places the film three minutes clear of Inglorious Basterds, two minutes clear of The Artist, and on the same footing as two of this year’s heavyweights in the Oscar race, Frankenstein and The Testament of Ann Lee.

Debuting at 100 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, Geoffrey McNabb of The Independent said in their review: “This is the most raw and vulnerable that Johnson has ever been on screen.

“Once you’ve seen him this exposed, you won’t watch his typical action movie stunts in quite the same way ever again.”

The Smashing Machine releases in cinemas on October 3.