Today, A24 released the official trailer for The Smashing Machine, which marks Benny Safdie’s first solo directing effort. (As for Josh Safdie, his Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow, is also out this year.) The biographical sports film, which tells the story of legendary mixed martial arts and UFC fighter Mark Kerr, stars Dwayne Johnson in the lead role. Also starring in the film is Academy Award nominee Emily Blunt as former Playboy model and Kerr’s ex-wife Dawn Staples.
On display in the two-and-a-half-minute clip is the ultra-charged realism that the Safdie brothers brought to such films as Good Time and Uncut Gems. In 2002, John Hyams made a documentary, also called The Smashing Machine, about Kerr, who was then at the height of his powers but also in the throes of fighting the demons of addiction.
The Smashing Machine opens on October 3.
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