What Mark Kerr thinks of Dwayne Johnson’s portrayal of him in The Smashing Machine

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The Smashing Machine spoilers follow.

The sports biopic The Smashing Machine, starring Dwayne Johnson, is currently playing in theaters. But what does the person the movie is based on think of Johnson’s performance?

The latest film by director and writer Benny Safdie focuses on the life of Mark Kerr, a former wrestler and MMA fighter. Kerr was a two-time UFC heavyweight champion, and the movie details both his successful career and his struggles with substance abuse, as well as his relationship with his ex-wife, Dawn Staples.

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Johnson plays the character of Kerr, a performance that is generating awards consideration, and Emily Blunt plays Staples in the movie.

The Smashing Machine includes a brief appearance by the actual person the film is about, seen at a supermarket near the end. Following this, a title card highlights Kerr’s important contributions to the early days of UFC, as the movie tries to bring attention to his relatively unknown legacy.

Kerr told TIME that the idea for a film about his life started in 2019. That’s when Dwayne Johnson’s representative contacted him to discuss the possibility of making a movie based on his story.

He confessed that his first conversation with the actor felt very business-like, and that communication stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic. He and Johnson didn’t speak for four years. They had met briefly before, during Johnson’s time as a wrestler, when they both worked out at the same gym.

However, once the movie project started gaining momentum in 2023, Kerr had a more meaningful conversation with Johnson. He remembers: “It wasn’t just a business discussion; it was a genuine and emotional exchange, with Johnson saying, ‘I’m committed to this. I’m eager to try something totally new.’ The level of honesty and empathy was noticeably different compared to our conversations a few years prior.”

Kerr went to where the movie was being filmed and said he thought the atmosphere was a little odd. He explained that he made an effort to avoid getting too close to Johnson while filming scenes that showed difficult or emotional parts of his life. However, the retired MMA fighter did work with Johnson during the scenes depicting “fight week” to assist the stunt performers in accurately recreating MMA techniques.

“The running joke was that everybody talked about me in the third person, and then [producer] Dave Koplan would go, ‘He’s right here’,” he shared of being on set. “It still has that feeling of talking about myself in the third person.”

He also commended Safdie for the support provided after filming wrapped up, and noted that everyone “created a family who made a movie”.

Writing on Instagram earlier this year, Kerr shared his thanks to Johnson for his work on the film, writing: “I am still in disbelief that this is real. I am so proud of the work DJ put into becoming The Smashing Machine. I have so much gratitude, humility and respect for [every little] detail production uncovered. Can’t wait to share this experience with the world.”

What has Dawn Staples said about Emily Blunt?

It seems Staples approves of the film, as she was present at its screening during the Toronto International Film Festivalearly last month.

“I felt like a star at the Toronto film festival!” she shared on Instagram, posting a series of photos with the film’s team, including Emily Blunt and her husband, John Krasinski.

Blunt herself spoke highly of Staples while developing the character for The Smashing Machine, telling Deadline it was the first time she’d portrayed someone still living.

She remembered wanting to truly connect with her, to understand her completely, and to hear all about her life – from when she was a little girl to… and she was very kind, patiently answering even my overly personal questions,

I hadn’t experienced anything like that before, so I was really eager to learn everything I could about her. She was very open and trusting, which I admire, because I’d be incredibly anxious about someone portraying a part of my life. It would frighten me.

It was a new experience for me, and I really enjoyed it. I even found myself wanting to repeat it – I’d watch videos of her on my commute, almost like I was stalking her. I was completely obsessed with seeing her.

The Smashing Machine is out now in UK and US cinemas.

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2025-10-03 13:20