When A24‘s The Smashing Machine triumphantly marched into theaters after a flood of critical praise, no one could have predicted that the movie from Benny Safdie, starring Dwayne Johnson in his most transformative role to date, would powerbomb at the box office. Unfortunately, when The Smashing Machine opened on October 3, the movie flopped, earning only $20.2 million against a $40 million budget. Today, audiences get a second chance to experience Safdie and Johnson’s The Smashing Machine in the comfort of their own homes as the film arrives on VOD today.
The Smashing Machine is a powerful and gritty story chronicling Mark Kerr’s rise in the early days of MMA and ultimately becoming a UFC champion. However, his subsequent struggles with painkiller addiction and his turbulent relationship with girlfriend Dawn Staples (Emily Blunt) take an immense physical and psychological toll on his life and career.
In a rare move, Johnson has commented on the film’s disappointing box office on Instagram, although he’s quick to highlight its creative success.
“From deep in my grateful bones, thank you to everyone who has watched The Smashing Machine,” Johnson wrote. “In our storytelling world, you can’t control box office results — but what I realized you can control is your performance, and your commitment to completely disappear and go elsewhere. And I will always run to that opportunity. It was my honor to transform in this role for my director Benny Safdie. Thank you brother for believing in me. Truth is this film has changed my life. “
Our own Chris Bumbray loved the film, saying, “The Smashing Machine should prove to be a success for A24 in every way once it gets its theatrical release, as critics will respect it while Johnson’s many fans will be dying to see him in something so different from the rest of his filmography. He’s done an excellent job reinventing himself, and no one can deny The Smashing Machine was well worth the effort all involved put into it.” You can check out the rest of his review right here.
Will you check out The Smashing Machine now that it’s available on VOD platforms? What’s keeping you from going to the theater more often? Ticket prices? Time? A desire to watch things at home? Digital release windows? Let us know in the comments section below.
