The Hollywood actor and WWE icon cut a lean figure during a press conference for his latest movie, The Smashing Machine.
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson made a brutally honest admission about his family and also cut a different look during a Venice press conference ahead of his latest movie.
The Rock, 53, recently surprised fans when footage of him went viral on social media ahead of the upcoming release of The Smashing Machine.
The 53-year-old is commonly associated with lifting weights and has been muscular for decades, dating back to his first appearance in the WWE in 1996.
He previously explained how he consumes a whopping 5,000- 6,000 calories – twice the recommended average for a man of his age – through eating five to seven meals per day, which are rich in protein, to maintain his buff physique.
However, he has recently cut a much leaner figure. The WWE legend looked unrecognisable in a preview of The Smashing Machine, a film which tells the story of legendary MMA fighter Mark Kerr – the movie also features a cameo from current undisputed heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk.
In the movie, The Rock looks very different due to the use of a wig and prosthetics, while the 53-year-old also lost a reported 60lbs for the part and was visibly leaner.
Fans were also surprised by how open the actor spoke about his family during a press conference ahead of the film’s release in October, and explained how he didn’t take inspiration from his father, Rocky Johnson – a former wrestler – when showing the more caring side of Kerr.
The Rock said: “It wasn’t really my dad. He was homeless by the time he was 13, so his capacity for love was very limited, and that’s the man that raised me.”
The California-born actor has previously been honest about the relationship difficulties he and his father had before Rocky died in 2020.
The Rock and his parents in 2015 (Credit:Getty)
In an Instagram post in 2024, the actor paid tribute to his father and wrote: “My regret in this life is that I never had a chance to say goodbye to him, because he died suddenly.
“I regret not reconciling our complicated father/son s**t before I lost him. Raised me with tough fatherly love and an even tougher hand.
“The more I live life, the more grateful I am for it. See you down the road, Soulman.”
Featured Image Credit: Getty
The Rock stuns fans with dramatic new physique as footage goes viral
Footage of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson arriving at a recent gala surprised fans on social media.
WWE icon The Rock has left fans in disbelief after showing off a drastically different look in viral footage.
The 53-year-old, real name Dwayne Johnson, is the definition of a physical specimen who trains relentlessly at the gym and is fuelled by a crazy strict diet which can total 6,000 calories.
The People’s Champion beefed up massively following on from his initial full-time WWE run and is a fitness icon in addition to being a wrestling legend and box office actor.
Though he typically looks the same for the vast majority of his film roles, Johnson underwent a major transformation for ‘The Smashing Machine’, a biopic about the life of former UFC star Mark Kerr.
The film is to be released on 3 October and had its global premier at the the Venice Film Festival, with Johnson appearing and showing up at the Miu Miu Women’s Tales event.
Wearing a loose-fitting shirt as he posed for photographers, Johnson appeared much leaner than usual – so much so that fans wondered whether the videos were AI or actually him.
One fan on X replied: “That’s The Pebble, not The Rock.”
A second commented: “Hollywood done cloned the final boss.”
A third added: “He’s been on a serious cut!
A fourth said: “Thank goodness. He was way too big for his age. Good to see him slimming down.”
A final user weighed in: “This is clearly AI.”
Johnson is slated to work with legendary director Martin Scorsese on a Hawaii mob film that will also star Leonardo Di Caprio and Blunt in the near future.
The Rock was at the Venice Film Festival and appeared leaner than normal. Image: Getty
The Rock comments on new project
But after dominating Hollywood and being shoe-horned into a box, he particularly enjoyed his latest project and the ability to do something outside the box.
“I have, for a long time, wanted this,” he told Variety.
“The three of us have talked for a very long time about, when you’re in Hollywood — as we all know, it had become about box office. And you chase the box office, and the box office can be very loud and it can become very resounding and it can push you into a category and a corner. This is your lane and this is what you do and this is what Hollywood wants you to do.”
“I just had this burning desire and voice that was saying, ‘What if there is more and what if I can?’ Sometimes it’s hard for us to know what we’re capable of when we’ve been pigeonholed into something.
“It’s harder to know what you’re capable of, and sometimes it takes people that you know and love, like Emily and Benny, to say that you can.”