The Smashing Machine
2025, USA
In the MMA world of the ’90s, the name Mark Kerr meant fear. Played by Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Kerr is an unstoppable force inside the ring, yet outside he is a fragile man haunted by addiction, insecurity, and inner demons. With his first solo feature, Benny Safdie delivers a story that captures both the sacred glory and the destructive cost of sport, asking what it truly means to stay human when the world demands you become a monster.
Venice Film Festival 2025 - Silver Lion for Best Director
Benny Safdie is a director, actor, and writer who, together with his brother Josh Safdie, first made his name in independent and later in mainstream American cinema. The Safdie brothers became known for raw, tension-filled films such as Good Time (2017) and Uncut Gems (2019). As an actor, Benny has also become increasingly in demand, appearing in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza (2021) and Christopher Nolan’s epic Oppenheimer (2023). In 2025, he completed his first solo directorial feature, The Smashing Machine.
Daddy Longlegs (2009)
Heaven Knows What (2014)
Good Time (2017)
Uncut Gems (2019)
Director: Benny Safdie
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Lyndsey Gavin, Ryan Bader, Zoe Kosovic, Bas Rutten, Oleksandr Usyk, Paul Lazenby
Cinematography: Maceo Bishop
Screenwriter: Benny Safdie
Producer: David Koplan, Danny Garcia
Editor: Benny Safdie
Music: Nala Sinephro
Hungarian Distributor: Fórum Hungary
Colour: colour
Run Time: 123 mins
The Smashing Machine
2025, USA
In the MMA world of the ’90s, the name Mark Kerr meant fear. Played by Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Kerr is an unstoppable force inside the ring, yet outside he is a fragile man haunted by addiction, insecurity, and inner demons. With his first solo feature, Benny Safdie delivers a story that captures both the sacred glory and the destructive cost of sport, asking what it truly means to stay human when the world demands you become a monster.
Benny Safdie is a director, actor, and writer who, together with his brother Josh Safdie, first made his name in independent and later in mainstream American cinema. The Safdie brothers became known for raw, tension-filled films such as Good Time (2017) and Uncut Gems (2019). As an actor, Benny has also become increasingly in demand, appearing in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza (2021) and Christopher Nolan’s epic Oppenheimer (2023). In 2025, he completed his first solo directorial feature, The Smashing Machine.
Venice Film Festival 2025 - Silver Lion for Best Director
Daddy Longlegs (2009)
Heaven Knows What (2014)
Good Time (2017)
Uncut Gems (2019)
Director: Benny Safdie
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Lyndsey Gavin, Ryan Bader, Zoe Kosovic, Bas Rutten, Oleksandr Usyk, Paul Lazenby
Cinematography: Maceo Bishop
Screenwriter: Benny Safdie
Producer: David Koplan, Danny Garcia
Editor: Benny Safdie
Music: Nala Sinephro
Hungarian Distributor: Fórum Hungary
Colour: colour
Run Time: 123 mins