Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is going back to his fighting roots but taking them to the big screen. In A24’s The Smashing Machine , the actor and WWE pro wrestler plays real-life retired fighter Mark Kerr , delivering an emotionally complex performance for the first time in his film career.

Johnson was admittedly “scared” to tackle the role, he revealed on CBS Sunday Morning partly because, up until now, he’s had a reputation of being a box office champ rather than an experienced actor.

“For years, I’ve been dreaming and hoping,” he explained. “My desire was to play not only a dramatic role, but something that I felt like I could really sink my teeth into, and rip myself open. You hear that term. I just didn’t want to do drama. I wanted to do something that really allowed me to do t

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