Dwayne Johnson seems finally ready to get his foot wet with dramatic roles rather than just continue with his working business model of appearing in family-friendly, action-based and comedic movies. The Rock has taken up an interesting and gritty biopic project to retell the story of one of the finest MMA fighter, Mark Kerr. Johnson is currently one of the most successful A-listers in Hollywood and has proven to be a global money-racking actor for production studios.
The 47-year-old's acting career won't be slowing down anytime soon thanks to the success of his new Fast & Furious spin-off franchise which will potentially span more films. But his continued success isn't stopping the actor from seeking out award-worthy roles/projects. Johnson will produce the biopic film via his production company, Seven Bucks Productions and is also set to star as the UFC Champion Kerr, reports Variety. The actor's longtime collaborators Dany and Hiram Garcia are also working on the project as producers.
The project is still in early development and doesn't even have a studio attached yet. But that would soon change in the near future going by the actor's unexpected announcement. "Mark Kerr's story is such an incredible story," Johnson said, during his surprising press release at Madison Square Garden. The actor went on to remark some of the hurdles or "demons" that Kerr battled along the way such as "addiction", "mental health" and also the "pressure fighting in front of 50,000 people and what that does to somebody."
"Here's a guy who has gone through it all, hit rock bottom, but the best part about Mark Kerr is that, like all of us in this room and all these fighters, these warriors, is that everyday, we get up and we want to do a little bit better tomorrow than we did today." For those unaware, Kerr a.k.a The Smashing Machine is a two-time UFC heavyweight champion and was known famously as the best fighter in the world during his time. So far, the fighter's journey has only been explored as a documentary touching upon his personal life with friends and romantic partners as well as his battle with painkiller addictions.
It's unknown when the project would see the light. But with Johnson serving as the producer, its possible the biopic could be on his top priority. But there's no question that the Rock could have a tight filming schedule at the moment. The star will next be seen in Jumanji 3, another potential $1billion earner and Disney's Jungle Cruise. But the big catch comes from Warner Bros. DC film, Black Adam in which Johnson will star as the anti-hero playing the titular role.
