Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt have been in the headlines ahead of the premiere of their upcoming film, The Smashing Machine. In a recent interview, the co-stars opened up about the filming procedure and shared how their close friendship helped them during their creative collaboration.
Dwayne Johnson credits Emily Blunt for helping him access his vulnerability
The Smashing Machine stars Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt shower praises on each other, with Johnson crediting Blunt for helping him tap into his vulnerability.
In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, the duo described their experience working together again after the 2021 film, Jungle Cruise. The Black Adam actor shared how Blunt, who is his real-life “best friend,” helped him access his “vulnerability.” He shared how this trait was necessary for him to essay the character of MMA fighter Mark Kerr. “If Emily and I weren’t best friends, I don’t know that we could’ve gone to the places we went to,” Johnson stated. The 53-year-old further added, “That closeness created the trust, which then allowed for the vulnerability, which then allowed for [us to] go anywhere.”
Meanwhile, Blunt acknowledged Johnson’s efforts to step into the UFC legend’s shoes. She stated, “It seemed to be an effortless immersion — like a full disappearance, spooky. From day one, he was elsewhere.” The Oppenheimer actress continued, “He has absorbed and borne witness to so much of what Mark has experienced that it was such a beautiful thing to watch this person let go of having to be an image, of having to be The Rock, and crack himself in half for this role.”
“I think until this moment, maybe [Dwayne] thought that was the only lane that people wanted to see him in,” she added. For the unaware, Emily Blunt plays Mark Kerr’s former wife, Dawn Staples, in The Smashing Machine. Directed by Benny Safdie, the film also features Ryan Bader, Bas Rutten, and Oleksandr Usyk, among others, in important roles. The biographical sports drama will release in theaters on October 3, 2025.
