Dwayne Johnson was seen visibly reduced to tears as his new film, The Smashing Machine, received a 15-minute ovation at the Venice Film Festival.
He stars in the movie, directed by Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems), sees the former wrestler play real-life MMA fight Mark Kerr, who reaches the peak of his fighting career while also battling intense personal problems. The drama co-stars Emily Blunt as Kerr’s then-wife Dawn Staples, and is in UK cinemas from October 3.
The role marks a change in pace for the star, best known for big screen action movies such as the Fast And Furious franchise.
He told Variety in January: “I’m at this point in my career where I want more. And I don’t mean I want more box office. I mean I want more humanity”. The actor also made headlines in April when The Smashing Machine’s first trailer arrived, with him appearing almost unrecognisable as Kerr.
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 work appears to have paid off, as the film’s Venice premiere on Monday (September 1) ended with a 15-minute standing ovation from those in attendance. A video from the event shows Johnson visibly moved and wiping away tears as he stands next to co-star Blunt.
Johnson remains present in the world of wrestling where he made his name, now serving on the board of World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) owners, TKO Group Holdings. In February, he returned to WWE Smackdown as his character The Rock, entering to a song by Lil’ Wayne as a nod to the show’s New Orleans venue.
That same month, Johnson was unveiled as the highest earning actor of 2024 by Forbes. The actor made £88million (£69million) –listed as $103million (£81million) gross before agents and other fees. The total was said to have come from a lucrative deal with Netflix for the action-comedy Red One, as well as his having a percentage of profits from Disney’s Moana 2.
