The first thing I saw was, “He’s not on ‘roids anymore.” The internet can be a terrible place. So began my trip to find the truth in the rumors. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson traded in his normally giant physique for a leaner look at the Venice Film Festival. Like the internet dark places I peruse, […]
The first thing I saw was, “He’s not on ‘roids anymore.” The internet can be a terrible place. So began my trip to find the truth in the rumors.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson traded in his normally giant physique for a leaner look at the Venice Film Festival. Like the internet dark places I peruse, audiences were stunned. The 53-year-old wrestler-turned-actor slimmed-down for his role as MMA legend Mark Kerr in the new film “The Smashing Machine.”
The transformation was like a shot across the world. Somehow, I think it was apart of the marketing of this movie. I had not heard of it until now. Also, it could be his run and being taken seriously as a thespian. At Saturday’s Miu Miu Women’s Tales event, The Rock stepped out in a blue button-up and black trouser. He has not looked like this in decades. He was joined by co-star Emily Blunt, who plays Kerr’s ex-wife, Dawn Staples.
Social media immediately started calling him “The Pebble.” Honestly, I think the jokes are corny, because “The Rock” is still a big dude. I am sure he could bust a couple skulls if needed. But that’s another story.
The film tells the story of Kerr’s rise in UFC and MMA and his struggles with prescription drug addiction. But according to Johnson, the story cuts deeper than cage fights.
At a Monday press conference, Johnson opened up about taking on the most challenging role of his career. “When you’re in Hollywood — as we all know, it had become about box office. And 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,” he said.
“I just had this burning desire and voice that was saying, ‘What if there is more and what if I can?’” Johnson continued. “Sometimes it takes people that who you love and respect, like Emily and Benny, to say that you can.”
He admitted the role forced him to confront questions he’d avoided. “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? You come to that recognition and I think you can either fall in line — ‘Well, it’s status quo, things are good, I don’t want to rock the boat’ — or go, I want to live my dreams now and do what I wanna do and tap into the stuff that I want to tap into.”
This reminds me of Sly Stallone in “Copland.” That was a good movie but did not turn him into that heavy actor he sought to be. Hopefully The Rock gets some grace.
“I’ve been scared to go deep and intense and raw until now, until I had this opportunity,” he said at the press conference. Dame Dash would pause him, but we’re going to let it slide.
“The Smashing Machine” is set to hit theaters Oct. 3.
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