There has been a lot of buzz around the upcoming A24 film, The Smashing Machine, which stars Jungle Cruise vets Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. Directed by Uncut Gems filmmaker Benny Safdie, the film marks a career shift for Johnson, who has become mostly synonymous with blockbuster favorites. It seems taking on more of a smaller-scale character study was a positive movie, as someone who has reportedly already seen The Smashing Machine shared glowing praise for the biopic, and now I can’t wait to see it.
Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera spoke to Variety about the significance of the festival as an awards season precursor, while also announcing the lineup for the upcoming 2025 festival. One of the films set for competition on the lineup, appropriately enough, is The Smashing Machine, and. Barbera revealed that he initially didn’t see the film as a contender for awards at the festival, but found his mind was changed after being incredibly impressed by what he saw from Safdie’s movie. He explained:
Dwayne Johnson is amazing in the film, as is Emily Blunt. Their performances really blew us away. At the start of the year I went to New York to meet Benny Safdie, who showed me some scenes from the film shot in Tokyo on his cell. I expected it to be a very spectacular film destined for out-of-competition. Instead, I discovered that this is a really great movie about two great characters that manages to reconstruct not just the life and the problems of wrestling champion Mark Kerr, but also to depict a world and a particular time [the aughts].
For context, The Smashing Machine follows real life MMA fighter Mark Kerr as he withstands the trials and tribulations of life as a professional fighter as well as personal hardships. First looks from The Smashing Machine show Johnson almost unrecognizable as Kerr, and based on these comments from Barbera, his commitment to the character goes beyond just his appearance.
Clearly the film blew expectations out of the water, as the film is now competing for The Golden Lion, which is the highest honor at Venice. Barbera continued, saying the FYC awards push likely won't stop at the festival circuit. As he put it:
So as soon as we saw it we had no doubts that this was a film for competition that is destined to make its mark. I don’t know if it will make its way to the Oscars, but I certainly think that A24 is going to go that route.
A24 has a strong history at the Oscars. The studio was behind Everything Everywhere All At Once and Moonlight, which both won Best Picture, and also produced other Academy favorites like Lady Bird, The Whale, and Minari. With this kind of buzz, I could definitely see A24 putting a lot of campaigning behind The Smashing Machine, especially with the talent involved. However, the film has some competition when it comes to being the A24 awards season darling, as the studio also has the Timothée Chalamet-lead Marty Supreme and Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest still set to be released this year
The Smashing Machine still has a long way to go before becoming a Golden Lion winner or Best Picture favorite. However these comments from Barbera are extremely promising. Based on the trailer and anecdotes about filming style by Benny Saftie, I was already hyped for The Smashing Machine, but to get the opinion of someone with a history of great taste, who has seen the movie is huge. For me the movie has gone from a possible rainy Sunday afternoon watch to an awards season must-see, and I can’t wait to hear more opinions after the movie premieres at Venice.
The Smashing Machine hits theaters on October 3rd, 2025, so make sure to check it out on the big screen when you can. For more information about other exciting titles heading to cinemas later this year, make sure to consult our 2025 movie release schedule.
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