Credit: A24The hype is building for The Smashing Machine starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson playing early mixed martial arts legend Mark Kerr. To help promote the movie, Johnson and Kerr gave a joint interview to Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated, where they discussed the making of the film and the bond between the two men. But clearly playing Mark Kerr means a lot to Dwayne Johnson. As successful as he has been in Hollywood, Dwayne Johnson has rarely been mentioned in the category of great actors. The Smashing Machine is clearly designed to showcase The Rock in a new way as a thespian.