Up next in 10
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson gets raw and vulnerable on Sway In The Morning, sharing how his most emotional role yet as MMA legend Mark Kerr in "The Smashing Machine" changed his life forever. Joined by Emily Blunt and director Benny Safdie, the trio dives into the passion, pain, and resilience that brought this groundbreaking film to life.
From unexpected friendships to breaking down toxic masculinity, this exclusive interview reveals the heart behind Johnson’s powerful performance and the challenges of portraying complex real-life struggles.
Watch as they unpack the chaos of combat sports, radical empathy, and a Venice Film Festival standing ovation that left them in tears. Don’t miss this inspiring and emotional conversation!
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#SwayInTheMorning #EmilyBlunt #BennySafdie #TheSmashingMachine #VeniceFilmFestival #MarkKerr
#markkerr #combatsports #emilyblunt #markkerr #dwaynejohnson
#emilyblunt #dwaynejohnson #bennysafdie #markkerr #smashingmachine
CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Intro
01:15 - Emily Blunt's Connection to The Smashing Machine Cast
06:34 - Dwayne Johnson on Following Your Heart
09:01 - Emily's Attraction to the Project
11:49 - Dwayne's Motivation for Joining the Project
17:58 - Standing Ovation at Venice Film Festival
23:01 - The Meaning of Winning
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0:00
Wow. Big round of applause for that one
0:03
right there, man. We are right now we're
0:05
with the cast and director. Yes.
0:08
>> Okay. Of the Smashing Machine, which is
0:11
a a tremendous movie. I got a chance to
0:13
watch it in advance at the be.
0:14
>> Yep.
0:15
>> Because I know one of the stars, uh, the
0:17
one and only Dwayne the Rock Johnson is
0:20
here. Give him a big round of applause.
0:23
>> Big fan of, uh, of one of the other
0:25
co-stars, Emily Blunt is here. Can you
0:27
believe we got Emily here?
0:30
>> And the director/ actor extraordinaire.
0:33
Give it up for the one and only Benny
0:34
Safy is here.
0:37
>> Yo, standing ovation, man.
0:39
>> Let's do it. Come on, man.
0:42
>> I'm going to stand.
0:44
I got to get this, man.
0:47
>> You guys are matching, too. Beautiful
0:49
color palette happening guy right here,
0:51
man. Come on, man.
0:52
>> It's so good to be on, man. It's great
0:54
with you guys. People may not know that
0:57
Dwayne actually is a citizen of Sway in
0:59
the morning. He told to our morning
1:01
show, right?
1:02
>> Many years. Many many years.
1:04
>> And we've never really told a bad story
1:06
about you. I don't know if you noticed
1:07
that.
1:08
>> I have. That's why I keep listening.
1:10
>> That was the prerequisite.
1:11
>> Yes.
1:13
>> Uh but it's an honor to have you all
1:15
here. Congratulations on this movie.
1:18
It's a tremendous movie. I'm a fan of
1:20
mixed martial arts and combat sports.
1:22
And even prior to the UFC, I was
1:24
watching a lot of what was going on. So,
1:26
I'm familiar with the Mark Ker story and
1:28
I want to get into that. But I I be
1:30
remissed if I didn't say we got Emily
1:32
Blunt.
1:32
>> Come on.
1:34
>> Come on.
1:35
>> And
1:36
you know, Emily, I'm thinking because of
1:39
uh we know that Dwayne has been into the
1:42
rap music, got into music business. He's
1:44
doing some songs and we know Benny is
1:46
from Queens. So, that's
1:47
>> that's where it all started.
1:48
>> Side. A little bit of both. Little bit
1:50
of both.
1:51
>> Rap is Yeah, I you don't you don't got
1:53
no bars, Vinnie?
1:54
>> I I I I I've I've tried.
1:56
>> You tried
1:57
>> and I failed.
1:59
>> But Emily Blunt,
2:01
>> tell me if I'm wrong,
2:03
>> could be the illst rap name ever.
2:06
>> Emily Blunt. No, that's killer.
2:08
>> I mean, the name Yeah, but not with this
2:10
accent.
2:12
>> It would sound awful. It would sound
2:14
awful. See, that's not
2:16
>> No one wants to hear that.
2:17
>> You can do any accent though.
2:19
>> We did not talk about that. And that was
2:21
exactly what I was going to ask you.
2:23
Like, do you realize you would have like
2:24
the coolest MC name ever and then ask
2:27
you guys what would your because you
2:29
have the rock. It's the rock. You
2:31
already have. You already have something
2:33
there. It's already built in.
2:34
>> I got to put the riz on it. You know,
2:37
rez.
2:39
That's good. That is really good. What
2:41
about you? What would your MC name be?
2:42
>> My MC would be bow tie.
2:44
>> Bow tie.
2:45
>> Because Yeah. I don't know. When I was
2:47
when I was really when I even though I'm
2:49
young, when I was really young,
2:51
>> I would wear a bow tie cuz I was like,
2:52
you know what? It's it's cool.
2:54
>> It's fun. And now I was just like now
2:55
it's like bow tie.
2:56
>> Thank you. That is good.
2:58
>> I love it. I love it.
2:59
>> Okay. I didn't know that part of your
3:01
song.
3:01
>> I know. It's just like I just I wanted
3:03
to be different in some way and I was
3:05
like, "Oh, that's easy."
3:06
>> You know, congratulations to you, man.
3:08
You come a long way as well. It's great
3:09
seeing all of you here. And Emily, we
3:12
sat you in the middle because you're the
3:14
cohesive connector to how all of this
3:16
happened, right? And I'm not sure if
3:18
people even know the story because I
3:20
know Dwayne, you and Benny had talked
3:21
about working together.
3:22
>> That's right. In 2019, I I brought this
3:25
this idea of the documentary of the
3:26
Smash Machine to Benny. I just watched
3:28
Uncut Gems. Love that movie. The
3:31
frenetic nature of that movie, the
3:33
energy of it, how he portrayed those
3:35
characters. And I thought, I think
3:36
there's something special about this
3:38
filmmaker. And Betty Safety. We met,
3:41
loved this idea, and then COVID hit
3:43
>> and it shut us all down.
3:45
>> And then cut to uh I'm going to pass a
3:48
baton on to Emily. And then cut to these
3:49
guys working on Oppenheimer together.
3:52
>> So we're in we're in the makeup trailer
3:54
in the New Mexican desert.
3:56
>> I'm so sorry. So sorry. And then I never
3:57
heard from Benny. He never heard from
3:59
me. Like it just went away. I think they
4:00
thought they were ghosting each other
4:02
because I had actually
4:03
>> after an incredible meeting.
4:05
>> It was really that like I just remember
4:06
like was wow there's something really
4:09
special behind Dwayne's eyes. You know,
4:11
I felt a connection and I got I was
4:15
like, you know, I got to I just I want
4:16
to talk I want to tell him something. So
4:18
I got an address that I thought was your
4:20
address. You know, who know right now?
4:22
Somebody's probably sleeping in that
4:24
sweater and it's just has no idea. But
4:26
like I and I so I I looked for the
4:27
sweater because Mark wears this very
4:29
fashionable crew neck nautica sweater,
4:32
yellow sweater. And there was something
4:34
about that decision that I thought was
4:35
really cool. And so I found a version of
4:38
the sweater in a trip XL. So I was like,
4:40
"Oh my god, what are the chances from
4:41
that time period?" And I wrote a
4:43
handwritten letter basically saying, "I
4:45
don't know what's going to happen if I'm
4:46
going to be a part of it. If not, I just
4:48
want you to put this on when you choose
4:50
to become Mark.
4:52
>> You put this on and it'll help you.
4:54
It'll help you get there. I would love
4:55
to be a part of it. And but I my
4:58
handwriting is scary, you know? I look
5:00
like it's a little it looks like a
5:02
little bit like a psychopaths
5:04
psycho like maybe six-year-old. So I'm
5:06
sure maybe somebody got it and was like,
5:08
let's just put this
5:09
>> and maybe the sweater was a bit grubby.
5:10
It was sort of like it was I got it on
5:12
like eBay. Oh wow.
5:15
>> It probably just looked like a dodgy
5:16
gift. Security were like
5:18
>> I didn't I never told this I got I did
5:20
get it dry clean before I sent it. Yes,
5:23
I got it because I was like, I can't
5:25
send him an eBay sweater. So, I got it
5:27
dry clean, got it fresh,
5:29
>> and anyway, it never I never heard
5:31
anything. So, I saw Emily and the first
5:33
thing I did was like, oh my god, I knew
5:36
they were friends. And I was like,
5:37
please. And so,
5:38
>> and then he goes, "Did he get the
5:40
sweater?" And I was like, "Why are you
5:42
sending Dwayne Johnson sweaters?" Like,
5:45
>> and then I got the whole story. And then
5:46
they both sent me the Smashing Machine
5:49
documentary that night and I watched it
5:51
in New Mexico.
5:53
And I remember calling DJ and going,
5:55
"This role, this part, this movie, and
5:58
this director, it's like perfect." And
6:00
like everything he'd been sort of
6:02
waiting for. I think like the
6:04
opportunity to
6:05
>> just put his feet to the fire, you know,
6:08
in a very dramatic, incredibly daunting,
6:11
challenging role. And I just think
6:12
there's no one better to catch you in
6:14
that environment than Benny. It's so It
6:17
was such a So they started dating again.
6:20
>> Okay. So you you brought them back
6:21
together.
6:23
>> She was the she was the
6:24
>> I was like the couple's therapist and
6:26
they they fell in love again.
6:28
>> I was like that dude ghosted me. I never
6:29
heard from him again. He's like he
6:31
ghosted me.
6:32
>> Like social media.
6:33
>> Yeah. We were actually talking about
6:35
resilience this morning on the show and
6:37
just finding ways to to get back up even
6:40
when it feels like it's quiet or someone
6:42
is kicking you while you're down. And
6:44
I'm wondering when you have this idea or
6:46
something just grabs your spirit if you
6:48
will and you can't shake it.
6:50
>> How do in this business, in this
6:51
industry, how do you fight to get these
6:54
things done, you know, cuz co I mean
6:57
it's almost going on six years ago now,
7:00
believe it or not. Yeah. How did you
7:02
guys keep pushing, you know, through?
7:04
>> Well, one, you got to try and shut out
7:05
the noise because the noise is ever
7:07
present. The moment you look at your
7:08
phone, turn on the TV, it's noise. The
7:11
other thing was I I Benny Emily believed
7:15
in this so deeply. You know when
7:17
something grabs a hold of you and it
7:19
doesn't let go.
7:20
>> And in this case there was a little
7:22
voice I always say behind my rib cage
7:24
that was just like hey you know tapping
7:27
and tapping. I think there's more.
7:29
>> Where's your challenge?
7:31
>> You've been lucky and blessed
7:33
>> to chase box office but I felt I want to
7:36
chase the challenge. I want to challenge
7:38
myself. want to step out of my comfort
7:40
zone. And it's scary.
7:41
>> And then you realize that, well, there's
7:43
the voice we have behind our rib cage.
7:45
That's our heart talking. And it doesn't
7:47
always align with what the brain is
7:49
saying because the brain says, well,
7:51
don't rock that boat. You're in the
7:53
comfort zone.
7:54
>> Movies make money. A lot of people make
7:56
money. You make a lot of people happy.
7:57
You make money. You pay the bills. Take
7:58
care of your family. Right. But there's
8:00
more. But there's more. I wanted to
8:02
challenge myself. So then finally
8:04
reached a point where I had to shut the
8:06
brain off. Yeah. Because the heart is
8:08
its own boss
8:09
>> and you got to listen to the heart. And
8:10
then that's when Emily and I spoke and
8:12
Benny and I spoke and then this idea
8:14
about we got something here that we
8:17
believe in.
8:18
>> Yeah.
8:19
>> Deeply and that could could rock people.
8:22
>> Yeah. And it was it was I felt the same
8:24
way, you know, cuz I I had never stopped
8:27
thinking about Marker.
8:29
>> Wow.
8:29
>> And just like I I would I would have
8:31
pictures of him on my phone. I would
8:33
just look at it. Last one I looked it
8:34
was like from 2020. was so that's like
8:36
five years ago. I remember just I would
8:38
always just have it cuz he there was
8:40
something about him that just stuck with
8:42
me and I couldn't shake that. And I
8:44
think like what you're saying about like
8:46
resilience and all that it's like and
8:47
and just listening to the thing inside
8:49
of you that says there's a reason why
8:52
this is
8:54
>> scratching at you from the inside,
8:55
gnawing at you and you got to just run
8:57
to that. You know, it's the only way to
8:59
do things really.
9:00
>> Word.
9:01
>> Emily, I'm wondering you said you
9:02
watched the documentary about Mark Kerr,
9:04
right? And that's how you learned about
9:06
him.
9:07
>> U had you watched mixed martial arts or
9:09
comeback sports prior to that?
9:10
>> I had never watched MMA, UFC, anything.
9:14
I mean, I think when I was growing up,
9:15
my dad was really into boxing. So, I
9:17
watched a lot of boxing with him,
9:20
>> but when I saw the documentary, it was
9:22
so clear that this was not
9:26
in in a way the backdrop of that ' 90s
9:28
machismo MMA like that. It's so
9:32
masculine, like so macho, and then
9:33
you've got this incredibly tender,
9:35
vulnerable man.
9:37
>> Mhm.
9:37
>> And it was just such an interesting
9:40
character cuz he's such a juxtaposition
9:42
to the sport that he does. They almost
9:44
don't run alongside each other.
9:46
>> He's quiet. He's quite innocent and
9:49
childlike and this very light voice. You
9:52
know, it was just
9:53
>> an amazing sort of paradox that I
9:56
thought would be a cool character for D
9:58
to play. But I was taken by that that
10:01
idea of the man who has to appear to be
10:04
indestructible,
10:06
who's unraveling emotionally and
10:08
struggling and what that pressure must
10:12
be. It was just
10:14
>> I was in and I was heartbroken by him
10:16
and by his relationship with Dawn.
10:18
>> Yeah,
10:19
>> I was I was in
10:20
>> very complicated layered relationship
10:23
with with Dawn, his
10:25
>> eventually becoming his wife. The thing
10:28
I loved about how you portrayed Don is
10:30
we don't hear about the women in the
10:32
fighters lives, right? We don't the
10:35
women have to patch them up.
10:37
>> Yes. They sacrifice.
10:38
>> They sacrifice, right? And I I love your
10:41
approach to Don. What was
10:43
>> Thank you.
10:43
>> What were what were you hoping to
10:44
accomplish? Because you showed us a lot
10:46
of layers. I mean, I was hoping to
10:48
accomplish what you were saying really,
10:50
like what goes on behind closed doors to
10:53
the person in which all that stress,
10:56
angst, anger, pent up rage, loneliness
10:59
gets decanted into her. Like, how does
11:02
she then function? Because she's got her
11:03
own demons.
11:05
>> So, you've got a character who struggles
11:07
with their own demons, their own
11:08
addictions, and they're watching their
11:11
partner completely unravel in front of
11:13
their eyes. And so it was a recipe for a
11:17
very chaotic relationship full of
11:19
>> a lot of explosive fights. And
11:22
>> I think when you're the wife of a very
11:24
dedicated athlete whose life is on the
11:26
line all the time,
11:29
>> I think you're required to get in line.
11:31
And I just think it wasn't in her nature
11:34
>> and she needed him and she loved him.
11:37
But what ended up happening was that she
11:39
was as devoted as she was destructive at
11:41
times.
11:42
>> Yeah. So, it's such a fascinating
11:44
character to play and to get to know the
11:46
real Dawn was essential for both of us
11:50
and Benny to talk to the real people and
11:52
kind of really nuance what they
11:54
experience behind closed doors.
11:56
>> Absolutely. You know, Mark is like um a
11:59
mountain of a man
12:01
>> what you're described,
12:03
>> but there's so much that lies beneath
12:05
the surface. And it makes me think of
12:08
today's man
12:10
>> and how a lot of especially young men
12:12
really gravitate towards like red pill
12:15
philosophies,
12:16
>> right? And they are trying to define
12:19
what masculinity means for themselves.
12:22
Um, for you, Rock, what would you say is
12:25
your perspective currently on strength,
12:29
on manhood?
12:30
>> Yeah. Uh, again, I'll go back to noise.
12:33
There's so much noise out there,
12:34
especially for our young boys out there,
12:36
our young men out there, just men in
12:38
general.
12:38
>> Yeah.
12:38
>> Um,
12:40
and it's interesting how things continue
12:42
to evolve almost like an amoeba and take
12:44
different shape and form. What does
12:46
vulnerability look like? What does
12:47
masculinity look like? Is it toxic? Is
12:50
it not? What does that mean? Um, is it
12:53
cool to be vulnerable? Um, empathetic,
12:56
radical empathy is a term that Benny uh
13:00
created for us at the beginning of this
13:01
movie
13:02
>> to have radical there's one thing to
13:04
have empathy which is important but to
13:05
have but to radicalize empathy where you
13:08
go deep and he had a great quote Benny
13:10
did. He said if we could make a movie
13:12
where maybe one of the takeaways is
13:14
empathy is a cool thing.
13:16
>> Yeah. And vulnerability is a cool thing.
13:18
And it's okay to rip yourself open. And
13:20
it's okay to because this idea of of
13:23
like
13:25
like mental health struggle, mental
13:29
wellness, mental health, we didn't have
13:32
this growing up.
13:33
>> Like it wasn't any of that, right? And
13:36
>> we were raised like, "What are you
13:38
crying about?
13:39
>> I'll give you something to cry about.
13:41
>> Stop." Right? So we know that. So this
13:43
idea
13:44
Bring it back. Bring it back.
13:48
>> Oh my god.
13:51
I'm going to cry.
13:53
>> I'll never do it again. But you said
13:55
that with like you you
14:00
>> I'll give you something to cry about.
14:03
>> But we but today I always feel like the
14:06
it's it's important. One of the
14:08
anchoring things that we tell our young
14:10
men out there is
14:12
>> use your vulnerability as a superpower
14:15
and your and your um openness to share
14:18
what you feel
14:20
>> and here's your heart. Wear it on your
14:21
sleeve and speak from here and that's
14:23
okay and it should be celebrated.
14:25
>> Yeah. And that's and that's I think what
14:26
was so important about this and like the
14:28
idea of like, okay, here you have this
14:30
guy who's fighting in these intense
14:32
fights, you know, giving everybody this
14:34
front row seat to this really kind of
14:36
incredible time period.
14:38
>> But even that guy who is as strong as
14:42
possible, he's struggling with stuff.
14:44
He's got his own issues and he is hiding
14:47
that. And what happens when you hide
14:49
that is not going to be good for
14:51
anybody, for you, for the people around
14:53
you. So let it out, you know, that's
14:56
basically the feeling is like you watch
14:58
this happen and and and I and I love
15:00
sports, combat sports, you know, the
15:02
boxing,
15:03
>> you know, and the best experience I've
15:05
ever had was watching my friend, he was
15:07
fighting at the Resort World Casino and
15:09
he was fighting for this the Fedinon
15:11
belt, you know, and nobody was he wasn't
15:14
supposed to win, you know. I think
15:15
everybody was thought he was going to
15:16
lose
15:17
>> and when he did win, it was the greatest
15:19
thing in the world. Not because he won,
15:22
but because I was connected to the guy
15:23
in the ring emotionally. I knew
15:25
everything he had been through. And
15:26
that's what's really beautiful about
15:28
like when you get into the fighting
15:30
world, there's a lot of support and love
15:32
there. And it's and it's a really
15:34
beautiful thing. So, I would get to know
15:35
this guy. I knew everything he had been
15:36
through. And then to see him achieve
15:39
that made me feel good. And and then if
15:41
he had lost, I would have felt just as
15:43
sad and and and close to him, you know?
15:45
So that's really like radicalized the
15:48
idea of like let's let's get inside
15:49
somebody else's head, you know?
15:51
>> Not wrong with you, Betty.
15:55
>> Benny, like as an actor, director, I I
15:58
always joke with them when something
15:59
really awesome happens for me, I'm a
16:01
grown ass woman, but I jump on my bed. I
16:04
don't know why. Like I just jump on the
16:05
bed. I'll just get happy. And for you
16:08
like actor, you know what it's like to
16:10
audition. You've been through that
16:11
process, right? You've been told no
16:13
rejection. But as a director, like, yo,
16:17
I'm about to direct The Rock and Emily
16:19
Blunt. Like, what was your moment? Like,
16:22
how did you block all of the noise out,
16:24
you know, and how did you celebrate
16:26
that? Because I think that has to just
16:28
be amazing to get that.
16:30
>> It's it's it's funny, you know, I don't
16:32
>> there's I I don't know why I keep
16:34
bringing this up, but it stuck in my
16:35
head as a kid. There was a guy in the
16:37
Guinness Book of World Records who ate a
16:39
car and a plane, and that was like his
16:41
thing. said he ate he ate it little by
16:43
little.
16:43
>> Little by little. Yes. He put him in
16:45
salt shakers. Little pepper. And then by
16:47
the end of it, he had eaten all of these
16:49
enormous machines.
16:51
>> And I thought this is I'm going
16:54
somewhere. Trust
16:55
>> him.
16:58
Cook. So I thought, okay,
17:00
>> how do you So if you look at the whole
17:02
plane and say, "How the hell am I going
17:04
to eat that thing?" You're going to get
17:05
overwhelmed and it's going to be
17:06
impossible. But if you break it up into
17:08
little bits and pieces, bitesized
17:11
pieces. Exactly. If you smash the rock
17:14
into little pebbles, it's not a big
17:15
deal, you know. So, it's crush the
17:17
blunt.
17:17
>> Yes. Exactly.
17:20
The rock in the smash, you grind up the
17:23
blunt, you get then you're good. Light
17:25
it up.
17:26
>> So, it's it's just kind of focusing on
17:29
the the ingredients
17:31
>> and then you get you get the the result
17:34
at the end, you know? It's it's really
17:35
just kind of trying to stay focused, you
17:37
know, that's really it. And not getting
17:39
overwhelmed by like what you're about to
17:41
embark on because that can be scary.
17:44
>> So, what isn't scary is, okay, I got to
17:46
move this bottle over here for the shot
17:48
that's happening here. You know, you
17:50
just break it down into something like
17:51
that.
17:52
>> Thank you for sharing that.
17:54
>> I'm glad I was able to land that. You
17:56
landed
17:59
it. It was awesome. I want to go back to
18:01
the vulnerability um conversation we
18:03
were having because I I thought it was
18:06
uh amazing to watch the standing ovation
18:08
you all received um in Venice and
18:12
>> 15 minutes people stood to applaud your
18:14
work
18:14
>> crazy
18:15
>> and these are people who don't got 15
18:18
minutes for you right
18:19
>> right
18:20
>> but I thought it was beautiful to see
18:21
you cry
18:23
>> and I I may have cried once on air you
18:27
know but it was because of grief Yes.
18:29
>> Yes.
18:30
>> Not it wasn't because of joy or
18:32
accomplishment.
18:33
>> Can you share what that moment felt like
18:35
for you that brought you to tears?
18:38
>> That was the most surreal moment and
18:41
most humbling thing
18:43
>> to feel that cuz
18:46
we made this movie with our heart
18:48
>> and there was no, you know, what's the
18:52
big four quadrant audience or what's the
18:54
box office going to be. This is just
18:55
from here. But, and I've been saying
18:58
this because I mean it is this movie
19:00
changed my life.
19:03
>> And he changed my life.
19:05
>> And she has been one of my best friends
19:07
for years who helped encourage me to
19:10
Here's the cliff. You don't know what's
19:12
out there. Neither do I. But let's jump.
19:14
>> Yeah.
19:15
>> So, by the time we get to Venice and we
19:19
arrive on Saturday, the premier's on
19:21
Monday. First of all, we're excited.
19:23
We've never been to Venice. We get
19:24
called. You're in competition. Oh wow,
19:26
they like a movie. Okay, let's see
19:28
what's going to happen. We get to
19:29
Venice. I'm scrolling my phone on
19:30
Saturday. You're seeing all these movies
19:32
now debut in Venice. They get five
19:33
minute standing ovation. Six, seven, 10.
19:36
I'm thinking, "Holy [ __ ] I don't Are
19:39
they going to clap for our movie? You
19:40
never know." And then I started getting
19:42
in my head.
19:43
>> Yeah.
19:44
>> As we as we do, the noise, it starts
19:47
getting in my head. And and
19:49
>> I thought I I said to them like a Monday
19:51
morning, if they don't clap, do we start
19:53
clapping for ourselves? How does this
19:56
work?
19:57
>> We're like,
19:58
>> and let me tell you the there there's a
20:00
there's a there's cards at the end of
20:02
our movie, which as you guys know, you
20:04
know, fighters fighters today are
20:06
famous. They make millions of dollars.
20:08
These guys were the pioneers. No one
20:10
knew their name. Fighters today, they
20:12
know their name. They're world famous.
20:13
They make millions of dollars. But his
20:16
name was Mark Kerr.
20:17
>> Yes.
20:18
>> And then the credits are supposed to
20:19
roll. That audience didn't wait. They
20:22
erupted.
20:23
>> Yeah.
20:23
>> I have chills.
20:25
And the lights came on in the eruption
20:28
what it represented I think for all of
20:30
us including Mark Kerr who was there.
20:32
>> Mark was there.
20:33
>> Mark was there.
20:35
>> Yes.
20:35
>> So Mark was sitting Mark's a big dude.
20:37
So he's sitting beside me. So you know
20:39
we're like this the whole time I felt
20:41
his body was just shaking vibrating.
20:42
Vibrating. And then at the end of the
20:44
movie that final 15 minutes of our movie
20:46
is is heavy.
20:47
>> And the big fight happens. He is
20:49
shaking. Mark Kerr. put my hand on his
20:52
knee and I look over and Benny's holding
20:54
his hand
20:55
>> and then the lights come on. We begin to
20:59
stand up. We're all emotional and I was
21:01
so happy for Emily. I was so happy for
21:04
our movie. I was so happy for Benny
21:07
>> because this is this is his too. It's
21:10
his vision.
21:12
And I was even more happy for Mark Kerr
21:15
because this audience is looking up at
21:18
him and it just erupted in essence
21:20
saying, "You lived a life worth living.
21:23
>> Thank you." And we see ourselves in
21:25
>> what you just did. So that moment in
21:27
Venice was
21:27
>> and also a life that he's been tough on
21:29
himself about, you know, just he owns
21:32
his shame. He he wears it on his sleeve.
21:35
And so it was just this moment of like
21:37
he reclaimed
21:40
um his identity and the imprint that
21:43
he's had on the world was sort of
21:44
recognized by those people and
21:47
>> they saw themselves in him and it was
21:49
just magical.
21:50
>> I also think we were scared going into
21:52
Venice.
21:53
>> It's scary.
21:55
>> Well, because some movies like they
21:56
really are your beating heart and and
21:58
some you're happy to be in them, but
22:00
then some are precious. And it was made
22:03
with such purity this film. It was like
22:06
a very purely intended film. We didn't
22:08
strategize anything. Benny creates this
22:10
environment of just such freedom. And it
22:12
it was so beautiful whole experience. So
22:16
those ones you're even more protective
22:18
of.
22:19
>> So we were going into Venice kind of
22:20
like we love our movie. Do you love our
22:23
movie? Like it's like you kind of offer
22:25
it tentatively to them and
22:28
>> and for it to for that kind of embrace
22:30
to be so euphoric. I mean, it was wild.
22:33
It was wild.
22:33
>> He He'll never say it, but I'm going to
22:35
say it and and then he's going to say
22:36
what he's going to say right now. Is
22:37
then we go, we all go home on Tuesday.
22:41
>> Mhm.
22:41
>> We start getting texts from Benny. He
22:43
says,
22:44
>> um, I got to go back to Venice and I
22:46
don't know why, and he didn't know why,
22:49
but he was awarded best director of
22:51
Venice.
22:52
>> Oh my god.
22:54
Man, thank you.
23:00
>> I was going to say that little bow.
23:02
>> I was I was going to bring it back to
23:04
vulnerability, you know, because like
23:07
>> with this movie, we were we put a lot of
23:09
like ourselves in it, you know, a lot of
23:11
our feelings and a lot of our emotions.
23:13
And what was so beautiful about that was
23:16
and I think it was interesting. It's
23:17
like when you cry from happiness, you
23:19
know, and not grief. Mhm.
23:20
>> What it was was when somebody recognizes
23:24
something that you if you're open and
23:26
you're vulnerable and openly vulnerable
23:28
and somebody looks at that and says,
23:31
"Okay,
23:32
>> I see that."
23:34
>> It's an amazing feeling.
23:36
>> And that's kind of what was
23:37
overwhelming. I was like, "Wow,
23:38
everybody, it's like the thing that I
23:40
thought maybe I was hiding or whatever,
23:43
>> somebody else is seeing that too." And
23:44
that feels really good. And then you
23:46
feeling right emotional and then you
23:47
cry.
23:49
You know how like um before a concert
23:51
the artists will probably have their
23:53
dancers, everyone who's a part of the
23:55
show and they have a big prayer or like
23:57
before a big game it's like the entire
23:59
team will have that huddle. When you
24:00
were mentioning Emily about feeling like
24:02
scared all of you guys before movie
24:04
premieres, do y'all do something to get
24:07
your
24:09
>> open tequila?
24:11
[Laughter]
24:15
Yeah, you loosen yourself up a little
24:17
bit. I have to every time I do a red
24:19
carpet, I have to be just a little bit
24:21
drunk.
24:22
>> I'm too scared otherwise.
24:24
>> I love it. Um, you you you you made me
24:27
think of something when you talked about
24:29
that feeling. Yeah. You know, that that
24:31
feeling you get when people receive or
24:33
accept something you put together. I
24:36
kind of parallel that with the feeling
24:38
that Mark got right when when to win,
24:41
you know, when he expresses
24:43
>> winning is everything. I don't know how
24:45
to think without winning. You know,
24:46
without winning, what would life be? You
24:48
guys highlight a few obsessive
24:50
behaviors. You know, even the addiction
24:52
to painkillers, right? Even in the
24:55
relationship, it was something about the
24:57
drama in the relationship that was kind
24:59
of kind of obsessive, right?
25:00
>> Yes, completely. Um, I'm curious to the
25:03
three of you, do you have any obsessive
25:05
behaviors in your personal life?
25:09
I'm I I'm probably uh I'm
25:12
obsessivecompulsive, you know. So it's
25:14
like in the sense that like
25:16
>> you get obsessed with certain things and
25:18
then it overwhelms you and then it and
25:20
then when you and just that idea that
25:22
like something can't get finished unless
25:26
this is done
25:27
>> and then it's this tunnel vision and
25:29
then that creates problems because then
25:31
somebody's trying to talk to you and
25:32
you're not listening and all you're
25:33
focused on is that. So it's like I know
25:36
what that feels like and and it's like
25:37
when you get that
25:39
>> feeling it's really hard to shake out of
25:41
it, you know,
25:42
>> and it can be about
25:44
>> anything. And I think the thing is is
25:46
it's when you let that feeling define
25:49
you or overwhelm you, that's when you
25:50
start to have problems, you know.
25:52
>> Yeah.
25:53
>> Yeah.
25:53
>> What about you, Dwayne? Would you say,
25:55
you know, cuz I would watch you in the
25:56
gym every day and feel guilty.
25:58
>> I was going to say, here we go. Here we
26:00
go. Something's coming. I can feel the
26:02
wind up.
26:03
You saw that?
26:04
>> I saw it. What about you, Dwayne? I
26:06
said, here we go.
26:07
>> Here we go.
26:08
>> What is some What would you say?
26:10
>> Probably I'm obsessed with uh with with
26:13
work. Not I need to go to work, but just
26:16
the thing we want, whatever that thing
26:18
is that we want, whether it's a little
26:20
thing or a big thing,
26:21
>> it it's it's your own two hands. You got
26:24
to put in the work with your own two
26:25
hands. And I'm also obsessed with
26:26
something I know Benny's obsessed with,
26:28
too,
26:29
>> is this idea of trying.
26:30
>> Yeah.
26:30
>> Just got to try.
26:32
>> Just got to try. Try be scared. Do it
26:34
scared. Whatever it is, even if you
26:36
don't know what's in front of you. And a
26:38
lot of times we don't see. I I you know,
26:39
you can't see what's in front of you.
26:41
>> But it's okay.
26:43
>> Walk by faith, not by sight. That thing,
26:45
right? And try this idea of trying. You
26:47
got to try. Take a swing.
26:49
>> Take a swing at it.
26:50
>> Take a swing. And if you're really
26:51
trying, that's the closest you'll get to
26:54
like to the to the person, to the human,
26:56
you know, like if somebody's trying to
26:58
lift something really heavy
26:59
>> and they're trying to do it with
27:00
everything they've got,
27:02
>> veins pop out, they start looking really
27:04
intense
27:05
>> because they're not focused on anything
27:07
else other than doing that thing. And
27:09
that's like the most beautiful thing in
27:12
the world, you know, to get close to
27:13
that. So
27:14
>> that's the goal whenever like we try to
27:17
do anything is just to get close to the
27:19
the feeling of what it is to be a human.
27:21
You know Danny should tell children
27:22
stories.
27:23
>> Wow.
27:24
>> By the way you say that was crazy.
27:27
>> Go ahead.
27:28
>> Foreshadowing
27:29
movie.
27:30
>> The next the next thing that we're doing
27:32
is we're Dwayne and I are going to get
27:34
together and we're going to make a movie
27:35
called Lizard Music which is based off a
27:37
book that I read to my kids by Daniel
27:40
Pinkwater. And I specifically said the
27:43
feeling after we made Smashing Machine,
27:45
this is crazy.
27:49
>> I like I like this is wild. So I said
27:51
the feeling that that I that like people
27:54
are having that we wanted people to have
27:55
leaving the theater.
27:57
>> I said I want to give that to kids and
27:59
families. I want them to be able to have
28:00
that conversation.
28:02
>> And so that's what we're going to do.
28:03
You know, it's it's
28:06
>> so wild that you guys said that.
28:08
>> Can I play a 75y old man?
28:09
>> You do? Yes, I will. Yeah,
28:11
>> the chicken man.
28:12
>> Okay. Well, you man, you out there now,
28:14
bro. This
28:15
>> this this um Marker, this role you just
28:18
played, man. This this, you know, I I've
28:21
enjoyed all of your movies, you know,
28:23
not just because I consider myself in
28:26
your friend circle.
28:27
>> You are. Yes.
28:29
>> But I like even with Emily, the one of
28:31
the reasons why I love what you do is
28:32
because I never seen the same character
28:34
twice.
28:35
>> Thank you so much. You know what I mean?
28:37
Appreciate that. I app I've watched you
28:39
in movies and didn't realize it was you.
28:41
>> Thank you. That seems a lot.
28:42
>> Okay.
28:43
>> I watched you in this movie and
28:46
immediately I didn't think of you.
28:48
>> Yeah.
28:49
>> You know, and compliment. Oh, bro. And
28:51
and the world is watching. You know,
28:53
you're Dwayne the Rock Johnson. So that
28:55
is
28:55
>> the man who can never disappear.
28:57
>> The man that can never disappear, right?
28:59
>> So moving to see him disappear. Yeah.
29:01
>> I'm I'm sure for you as well, right?
29:03
>> Yes. Very. I mean, it was just it was so
29:05
exciting because
29:07
>> and strangely when he first walked in
29:09
the camera test, I'll never forget it.
29:12
>> No, it was like it was like Moses
29:13
parting the seat. People were like
29:16
>> just aruck when he walked in, but it was
29:18
just an entire energetic shift, demeanor
29:20
shift, like everything
29:21
>> the side door behind
29:23
>> quiet.
29:24
>> Yeah.
29:24
>> And we were like,
29:27
>> and he's kind of doing the voice and
29:29
everything. And we were like
29:31
>> like and I just said, I'm going to cry.
29:33
I'm gonna cry looking at you.
29:35
>> Did you cry?
29:36
>> Well, I didn't cry, but I did well up.
29:39
But I did cry a lot during this movie,
29:41
obviously. You know,
29:42
>> it's funny. Swear, you use the term
29:44
friend circle, and you said something
29:46
that I'm going to probably share with my
29:47
husband later.
29:48
>> You said, I found this is the person
29:51
that said, "I'm going to jump with. I
29:53
found a person to jump with." And I
29:55
think that's so beautiful because it's
29:57
that requires love. That requires trust.
30:00
It requires patience. It requires
30:02
listening. You don't always hear that in
30:04
terms of a friendship. So, I'm curious.
30:06
How did you two become friends? How did
30:08
>> Well, we worked on Jungle Cruise
30:10
together. But we all you work you do a
30:12
project and you sort of
30:15
magical like when you take people away
30:17
from a movie and I would say I could
30:19
count on one hand actors I've worked
30:20
with who are in my life like really in
30:23
my life like dear dear friends who we
30:24
talk all the time and when that happens
30:27
it's like the best because
30:29
>> you have this sort of insular experience
30:31
on a movie and usually it's contained to
30:34
that
30:35
>> and it's great and when you see each
30:36
other again it's awesome
30:39
>> but I think I I don't know. I just loved
30:42
him. I just thought I loved him. And I
30:44
know we're kind of like polarized people
30:47
in some ways when it comes to like where
30:49
you think we've come from and what we
30:50
might identify with. And
30:53
>> I think we just stayed close over the
30:55
years and shared a lot. And
30:58
>> it was important to me for this venture
31:01
cuz I'm such a dork and I love acting so
31:03
much that I I love it. And I and I knew
31:07
that he was going to just love an
31:10
experience like this. And I want that
31:11
for everyone. Like if you've got a need
31:13
to fly and you're scared, like I would
31:15
want it for any actor like to take that
31:17
leap. I'm just very happy that Benny
31:20
>> cast me in the movie
31:22
>> and not Scarlett Johansson. I mean
31:24
someone
31:25
>> the reason
31:25
>> that Dwayne would have preferred but
31:27
>> but it was it's because of that
31:29
connection that I realized that this was
31:31
going to work because when you have a
31:33
relationship that's complicated like as
31:35
you were saying that exists and almost
31:37
subsides on that volatility.
31:40
>> It needs to have a strong foundation.
31:41
You need to feel that there is
31:43
>> that pull towards one another. They may
31:45
never meet, but you need to feel that
31:47
there's a deep connection. And that I
31:50
saw that between them and I and I
31:52
realized, well, then we could take these
31:55
these arguments that happened, you know,
31:57
that everybody's had,
31:59
>> you know, and we can make them really
32:01
real
32:02
>> in the sense that like you feel like
32:04
these hurt the other person
32:06
>> and they're not fun to watch,
32:09
>> but I think it's a it's it's it's
32:10
>> it's an experience, you know, because if
32:12
it just gets inside and you see that and
32:15
then maybe you're not so hard on
32:16
yourself, you know. So what what kind of
32:19
steps did y'all take though? Because a
32:21
lot of the arguing scenes were and you
32:24
guys are friends, but you know when you
32:26
in character, you in character,
32:28
>> they got real intense. So what kind of
32:30
environment did you create for Emily and
32:32
Dwayne? Because once you y your rap,
32:35
>> hey, we got it.
32:36
>> That's still emotion, right?
32:37
>> Yes. Yeah. We're still recovering.
32:39
>> Yeah. And I guess it's like the first
32:41
thing that we did even before we started
32:43
anything was we all just kind of got
32:44
together and then I said let's just talk
32:47
about the times where we've got into
32:49
>> that's right
32:49
>> arguments with the people we love where
32:52
you said something that you felt bad
32:53
about and you were embarrassed of it
32:55
>> and I said I'm going to go first and I
32:57
just said the things that I felt and I
32:59
wanted it to be like okay now we can all
33:01
feel comfortable
33:02
>> because we're we're it's like that we're
33:04
not hiding anything from one another you
33:06
know if we trust each other then we can
33:07
go to these places
33:09
>> and then on top of that it was like when
33:10
when those moments were done
33:13
>> I knew what had happened you know
33:15
because it's like as an actor
33:17
>> you go you have to connect it to
33:18
someplace
33:19
>> so I saw them connecting it and I knew
33:23
that that was difficult so it wasn't
33:24
like a cut we got it it was like wow
33:27
let's take
33:28
>> let's take some time
33:30
>> to talk yeah that was part of the day
33:32
was like the the hour come down
33:34
>> built in time to recover you know really
33:38
as close as I feel to DJ. We didn't talk
33:41
much on this movie. We didn't socialize.
33:43
We did not like it was so
33:46
>> on other ends of the trailer.
33:47
>> We were on other ends of the trailer.
33:48
Like he was getting into a zone. And
33:52
>> of course it was like a joyful set
33:53
because you can see the joy bomb that's
33:55
sitting next to me. Like it was just
33:57
heaven running to work to to to work
33:59
with him. But
34:00
>> it was very focused. It didn't feel
34:03
antagonistic, but we were elsewhere and
34:06
we knew we were going to have to go at
34:08
it and blow the doors off the place. And
34:10
so, it's like a storm brewing when
34:12
you're heading to those scenes. And I
34:14
get very interior and I get very I I
34:17
need to be alone
34:18
>> and then you rock and roll. I can't
34:21
sleep the night before. I just you
34:22
you're kind of not in a good state.
34:25
>> And it helps it helps the scene.
34:27
>> Yeah.
34:27
>> It lends itself to the scene. But then
34:29
afterwards it was such a moment of like
34:31
unity and like we we did something.
34:35
>> Yeah.
34:36
>> And you know you know Sway also what
34:37
Benny does because I want to give him
34:39
his flowers here is that
34:41
>> he the environment he creates this is
34:43
why he's so singular as a filmmaker.
34:45
This is why he's so um evocative and you
34:50
go, "God, that's a signature Benny Safty
34:52
thing that he does
34:54
>> where it feels like a prowling camera
34:56
and maybe you shouldn't be watching
34:57
these guys argue like this. Does it feel
34:59
makes it feel uncomfortable?"
35:01
>> So the house that Mark and Dawn live in
35:03
in the movie that's on a sound stage,
35:05
Benny had it built from scratch.
35:07
>> Wow.
35:08
>> With not movable walls, so everything is
35:10
up structure, real running water,
35:13
>> lights. So he'll remove all these lights
35:16
that we have here. There are no lights.
35:18
>> Yeah.
35:19
>> Except lights around you. Really?
35:21
>> And he built this house from scratch so
35:24
he can hide the cameras.
35:25
>> Wow.
35:26
>> Wow.
35:26
>> So that's why we went into those scenes
35:28
ready to rumble. We don't see cameras.
35:30
We're not
35:32
>> none of the fighting scenes either with
35:34
the fighting scenes. Just in the house.
35:36
Yeah. In the room.
35:36
>> You were saying especially in the house.
35:38
>> Especially in the house. It's that
35:39
intimacy of like I really don't know if
35:41
I should be watching this, you know?
35:43
That's like as if you're voyeristically
35:45
kind of in on this relationship.
35:46
>> But but the fighting scenes,
35:48
>> it was a similar thing, you know, but it
35:50
was like because we were shooting on
35:51
film, you needed to have a certain
35:52
amount of lights. But with Mo Bishop,
35:55
the cinematographer, we figured out ways
35:57
to like put the lights above and hide
36:00
them and make them practical, you know?
36:02
So, the ring
36:04
>> has all these bright lights on it, you
36:06
know, and then we have a the Pride has
36:08
that beautiful white mat, so it's
36:10
bouncing the light off. and we would go
36:11
into the into the crowd and check the
36:14
light readings as you move through so
36:15
that it would have this nice falloff
36:17
create a really beautiful image. But
36:20
>> I'm not going in the ring. I'm staying
36:22
on the outside and I'm making it look
36:24
like it's just happening once and that's
36:26
because you you take away all of the
36:28
kind of the things you would normally
36:30
have and you just move them out of the
36:32
way and there's you could still get at
36:34
it. You just have to work a tiny bit
36:36
differently. You know,
36:37
>> you did something else that I And then
36:39
I'mma stop I'm I could get real detailed
36:41
here, but uh
36:44
>> the score.
36:45
>> Oh yes.
36:47
>> So awesome.
36:47
>> Nalis and Efro.
36:49
>> Oh my gosh, man. Because that even
36:52
>> what a contradiction that score was.
36:53
>> Oh my gosh. The jazz
36:55
>> with the saxophone playing.
36:57
>> Yes. The horns coming
37:00
>> kind of made sense of it because jazz is
37:02
kind of like
37:03
>> chaos organized,
37:05
right? You got to go with it. You got to
37:07
go with it. And I felt like
37:08
>> that's what was in Mark's head at times.
37:11
>> That's right. See sway.
37:13
>> That's it.
37:14
>> My god.
37:14
>> That's it. Literally, that was what like
37:16
so so Nala.
37:18
>> Yeah. This is crazy.
37:21
>> You're like locked in. This is wild. So
37:23
yeah, with Nala, I was she like I would
37:25
just tell her what
37:27
>> he was feeling. And she would interpret
37:29
that with her the group of musicians she
37:31
put together. And I had the privilege of
37:33
watching like a jazz session happen.
37:35
We'd have the movie on and then they're
37:37
looking at each other, they're playing,
37:39
they're and they're trying to create the
37:41
the vibe of what it's supposed to be.
37:43
And I would go in there and I would
37:44
basically set it up like a scene.
37:46
>> And she created the most incredible
37:48
music. And I said it's like a almost
37:50
like a psychoanalytic
37:52
>> version of what's going on in the head,
37:54
>> you know, and then on top of that, MMA
37:57
has a very improvisational quality to
37:59
it. You know, at one moment you're on
38:00
top, next moment you're down on the
38:02
ground. You got to figure out how to
38:03
switch it. And so there was that element
38:05
of jazz that I saw in in the ring too
38:08
and then out of the ring. Yeah. It's the
38:09
same thing. It's always like it's tied
38:11
to the to the mindset.
38:13
>> You know what I'm curious about, Ben?
38:15
Because you also wrote this as well,
38:16
right?
38:17
>> Mhm. When this vision first comes to
38:20
you, and you spoke about being like very
38:22
obsessive over a project and it's all
38:24
you can like breathe and eat. Um, but
38:27
obviously there's jazz that comes with
38:30
your team, with the production crew.
38:32
>> Sure.
38:33
How much would you say of your initial
38:36
vision for this was maintained once you
38:39
started bringing the team in?
38:41
>> What a great question.
38:42
>> That is a great question. And and it's
38:44
it's it's almost like contradictory. I
38:46
would say it's almost exactly this thing
38:48
that I wanted it to be.
38:50
>> Exactly. But that's because I knew it
38:54
would require actually letting go of a
38:56
certain amount of control. Okay. and and
38:58
allowing people
39:00
>> to bring themselves to it. You know, at
39:02
at every moment, I want it to feel
39:04
alive. I don't want it to feel like,
39:05
okay, we got those lines perfect because
39:07
if it sounds like you're just saying it,
39:09
h that's not good. I want it to just
39:11
we'll figure it out. We if ideas, let's
39:13
go. Let's make this exciting, you know?
39:16
And so, at the end of the day, when you
39:17
watch it back,
39:19
>> it feels like, oh, yes, that's what I
39:21
wanted it to feel like. I didn't know
39:22
how I would make I knew how I would get
39:24
there, but you didn't. It's like it's
39:26
different than what I saw in my head,
39:27
but it plays it plays the same if that
39:30
makes sense. I don't know.
39:31
>> You did an excellent job, man.
39:33
>> What is that? Corridor of Dreams. Yes.
39:35
>> Dreams. Killer song.
39:37
>> And I don't want to give away the movie
39:39
movie. Y'all got to watch the movie. All
39:41
right. You know, but even in that end
39:43
scene, you know, towards the end and it
39:46
just all played. I'm a music guy, so it
39:48
>> it all played along really well. I think
39:50
you guys done excellent work together
39:53
and I hope to see you do more.
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