Emily Blunt Praises Dwayne Johnson in The Smashing Machine

Emily Blunt She has nothing but praise for the Smashing Machine co-star, Dwayne Johnson.

What did Emily Blunt say about Dwayne Johnson?

While speaking at the Red Sea Film Festival in Saudi Arabia, Blunt talked about her role in The Smashing Machine, A24’s upcoming biopic about former wrestler and mixed martial arts star Mark Kerr. Blunt plays Dawn Staples, Kerr’s then-girlfriend. In order to play Kerr, Johnson had to wear prosthetics and change his body, something he rarely did in previous roles. Plant believes this is the first time Johnson can truly “disappear” for a while.

“Dwayne is someone who, you know — not just because of his enormous size, but just because of who he is — has never been allowed to disappear, to be unrecognizable for that matter,” Blunt said during an interview at the panel. diverse). “It’s an incredibly intense movie — yes, centered around the life of real-life MMA fighter Mark Kerr — and all of his struggles with addiction and his relationships. It was, again, a very immersive, intense, very emotional experience to do it, and he’s exceptional at it.”

Johnson and Blunt previously worked together on 2021’s Jungle Cruise. The duo knew they wanted to work together again, though they didn’t expect it to be on such an intense film.

“I love him so much, and we had the best time on the Jungle Cruise,” Blunt added. “We knew we wanted to do something else together. I don’t think any of us knew it was going to be as devastating as The Smashing Machine, which I can’t wait for people to see.”

“The Smashing Machine follows Mark Kerr, a legendary mixed martial arts fighter from the UFC’s no-holds-barred era at the peak of his career,” the official synopsis reads. “He struggles with addiction, winning, love and friendship in the year 2000.”

The Smashing Machine also stars Lindsay Gavin, Oleksandr Usyk, Ryan Bader, Bas Rutten and Zoe Kosovic.

Benny Safdie is the writer, director, and co-producer of The Smashing Machine. Additional producers include Johnson, Eli Bush and David Coplan.

A24 The Smashing Machine will be released in 2025.