The Smashing Machine: Dwayne Johnson’s raw MMA gut-punch
- In cinemas 3 October 2025 in the UK with a wide theatrical rollout.
- Starring Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Ryan Bader, Bas Rutten.
- Biographical sports drama built for the big screen, with premium formats at major chains.
- Set in the wild early days of mixed martial arts, where addiction and a brutal fight calendar hit back hard.
- Leans into vulnerability, obsession, the cost of winning and what happens when the “machine” finally breaks.
Story in one sentence
Mark Kerr and Dawn fight for MMA glory as painkillers, pressure and the fight world keep dragging him under.
Setting the scene
Arriving in UK cinemas on 3 October 2025, The Smashing Machine is a biographical sports drama about real-life MMA pioneer Mark Kerr. Instead of a clean, inspirational rise-to-the-title story, it dives into a messy few years where success and self-destruction turn up to the same training sessions.
The film is written and directed by Benny Safdie, making his solo leap after intense thrillers like Good Time and Uncut Gems. Here he slows the pace down just enough to sit with the bruises, the silences and the bad choices that come with being paid to get punched for a living.
Dwayne Johnson plays Kerr in a way that deliberately kicks against his usual blockbuster persona. He is heavier, more worn down and often hunched, carrying the look of a man whose body has been a tool for so long that he is not sure where the tool ends and the person begins.
Emily Blunt is Dawn, the partner who sees every side of Kerr that the crowd never does. The film spends a lot of time in cramped rooms, quiet hotel corridors and late-night arguments, using their relationship to show the emotional cost of staying “fight-ready” at all times.
The backdrop is the late 1990s MMA circuit, when rules were looser, medical checks were lighter and fight schedules could be punishing. Early tournaments, overseas trips and the lure of big paydays create a world where saying “yes” to one more bout is both the dream and the problem.
Safdie leans into a rough, grainy visual style that makes every clinch and takedown feel thick with sweat and fatigue. The camera often stays close to Kerr’s face, catching the small flickers of fear, doubt and calculation that sit behind the “smashing machine” reputation.
Painkillers and other crutches slide into the story as a horribly logical extension of the job. If your livelihood depends on getting back in the cage, numbing the damage quickly becomes part of the weekly to-do list, and the film tracks how that routine slowly takes over.
The supporting cast, including real fighters like Ryan Bader and Bas Rutten, adds a layer of authenticity to the training rooms and corners. You get the sense of a tight, slightly feral community that understands the grind but is not always equipped to deal with the fallout when someone starts to come apart.
Violence-wise, the film is more about impact than gore, but it does not flinch. Fights are shot to feel disorienting and exhausting, with takedowns, ground-and-pound and ropey breathing that underline how thin the line is between winning a belt and not getting up.
Underneath the punches, the big themes are vulnerability and identity. Kerr’s problem is not just whether he can win the next fight, but whether he knows who he is once the crowd stops chanting his name and the lights come up.
For viewers, the pitch is simple: if you want a glossy, feel-good sports movie, this is not it. If you are up for a raw character piece about an athlete being pushed to the edge by his own ambition, his addictions and the brutal world he works in, The Smashing Machine is the October release that earns its bruises