Dwayne Johnson is easily one of the most popular Hollywood actors. He started his career in Hollywood with a role in the 2001 movie The Mummy Returns, starring Brendan Fraser as the lead hero. The very next year, Johnson landed his first lead role in the film The Scorpion King. Ever since then, he has starred in numerous movies, most of which have been in the action genre.
Dwayne Johnson, the wrestler-turned-actor, also touched down on the superhero genre a couple of years ago with the movie Black Adam and it most certainly was not his brightest moment, considering the critical and commercial journey of the movie. Some of his most recent comments lead us to a major question.
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Is Dwayne Johnson Planning to Refrain from Starring in Potential Blockbusters?
The show business is both tricky and risky. While most of the time the attachment of big names to a project is enough to pull the masses to the cinema halls and TV screens, at times, the trick fails, and that results in box-office failures with poor critical reception. This takes a toll on everyone involved in the project, including the famous ones.
Dwayne Johnson‘s portrayal of the DC superhero Black Adam in the eponymous movie, released in 2022, earned him millions but did not land nearly as well with the audiences and critics as it was expected to and thus, failed to break even. Considering the superhero fatigue that has taken over, the chances of a sequel to the movie doing well are not good.
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The Red Notice star seems to have finally found what he wants to do next, and that certainly does not involve potential blockbusters. In a voice memo that he sent to Variety‘s Ethan Shanfeld, he said:
“I’m at a point in my career where I want to push myself in ways that I’ve not pushed myself in the past. I’m at a point in my career where I want to make films that matter, that explore a humanity and explore struggle [and] pain.”
Luckily for Johnson, he has found exactly what he has been looking for, and that happens to be A24’s upcoming project, The Smashing Machine. The movie will see him in the role of the mixed martial arts champion, Mark Kerr.
Dwayne Johnson Has Made His Plans Clear
While the Jungle Cruise star seems to have made up his mind about what he exactly wants, he has also clarified what he truly means by what he has said. In the same voice memo, he clarified whether or not he will be making big-budget movies in the future, saying:
“I want to be clear not to say that this is an abandonment of big, four-quadrant movies. I love making them, and there is tremendous value and importance in [them] … but there’s a time and a place for them. 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 Smashing Machine, which will be Benny Safdie’s solo directorial debut, is going to be the movie that gives Dwayne Johnson what he wants, and he is sure that collaborating with Safdie is a great decision.
Frequently asked questions
What did Dwayne Johnson mean by wanting films that matter?
In a voice memo to Variety, Johnson said he wants to make films that matter, that explore humanity and explore struggle and pain. He stressed this was not a rejection of big movies, adding there is a time and place for them, but that he now wants more humanity in the kinds of projects he chooses to take on.
How does Black Adam factor into Johnson’s rethink?
His 2022 DC film Black Adam is framed as a commercial and critical letdown that struggled to break even despite earning him a large payday. The coverage presents that disappointment as a prompt for Johnson to reassess his direction, steering away from relying purely on tentpole blockbusters toward more character-driven, substantial material.
Which project shows Johnson pursuing more serious material?
Johnson signed on to A24’s The Smashing Machine, the solo directorial debut of Benny Safdie, playing real MMA champion Mark Kerr. The role is offered as evidence of his shift toward weightier, humanity-focused storytelling, a clear contrast with the franchise spectacle that defined much of his earlier Hollywood output.
