Benny Safdie has officially stepped out on his own. The filmmaker, known for co-directing modern classics like “Good Time” and “Uncut Gems” with his brother Josh Safdie, makes his solo directorial debut with “The Smashing Machine.” And judging by its reception at the Venice Film Festival—where Benny took home the Best Director prize—it’s already a major awards season contender.
The film stars Dwayne Johnson in what many are calling a career-best turn as Mark Kerr, the legendary MMA and UFC fighter whose dominance in the ring was matched only by his struggles outside of it. Emily Blunt co-stars as Dawn Staples, Kerr’s partner, anchoring the story with emotional depth. The supporting cast includes Ryan Bader, Bas Rutten, and Oleksandr Usyk.
Reviews out of Venice were glowing. As The Playlist reviewer put it, “One would not imagine needing a tissue at the final holding card of a Benny Safdie martial arts movie starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson in a heavy layer of prosthetics and shaggy toupée. And yet, ‘The Smashing Machine’ beautifully concludes its examination of the sacrifices that come with trailblazing by earnestly nodding at the often unspoken cruelty of legacy.” That reaction alone cements Johnson as a serious Best Actor contender heading into awards season.
For Johnson, the role was transformative. As he told Vanity Fair recently: “You have to be willing to tap into all the stuff that you’ve gone through, and this was stuff that I had not explored on camera or otherwise. I’m not a big therapy person, even though I’m an advocate for whatever it is you need. I found it so scary, but also so nourishing and freeing. I ripped it open.”
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Meanwhile, Josh Safdie has his own A24 release on the horizon later this year, making 2025 a landmark year for the siblings who helped rewire indie cinema.
“The Smashing Machine” is written and directed by Benny Safdie and produced by Safdie, Dwayne Johnson, Eli Bush, Hiram Garcia, Dany Garcia, and David Koplan. A24 will release the film nationwide on October 3, 2025. Watch the new trailer below.
Rodrigo Perez is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Playlist, which he launched in 2007. He has worked in entertainment journalism since 2000, including at MTV, and has written for SPIN, IndieWire, Pitchfork, Complex, Magnet, and various music, film, and entertainment publications over the past two decades.
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