True to its name, The Smashing Machine is an exercise in brutality, full of crashes, fights and collisions leaving shards, both orthopedic and emotional. The 2002 documentary tour de force chronicles the rise and fall of Mark Kerr, d/b/a the Smashing Machine, a hard-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside Ohio fighter. Now comes the scripted version. Dwayne Johnson, d/b/a The Rock, plays Kerr in the film of the same name, which is released Oct. 3, and entered the fray carrying the distinct whiff of Oscar nominations.
In the latest Sports Illustrated digital cover, The Rock and Kerr sat down with Jon Wertheim for a no-holds-barred Q&A.
