It seems like Dwayne Johnson is saying goodbye to his days of solely being known as an action hero and embracing his new acting era. He recently worked with A24 on the MMA movie The Smashing Machine, releasing later this year, and now he will team up with the indie studio once again for a psychological thriller titled Breakthrough.
According to Deadline, the new thriller is from Zeke Goodman, who previously starred in Amazon's short-lived I Know What You Did Last Summer series and the streamer's take on Cruel Intentions.
The film sounds a little bit like some of the other movies we've seen produced by A24, such as The Menu and Opus. It follows "an alienated young man who comes under the influence of a motivational guru, whose intoxicating charm masks his morally questionable methods of manipulation and his own concealed darkness."
Johnson will reportedly be playing the guru role, which means he's likely going to be an antagonistic presence in the film. It actually also reminds me of the upcoming sports horror film Him from director Justin Tipping, which follows an ambitious young athelete who gets invited into the dark world of a legendary quarterback (Marlon Wayans).
A24 hasn't cast any other roles yet, nor is there a director attached to the project at this time.
Johnson's involvement stands out because the actor has been known for his blockbuster movies in the past, films that might not be the most critically acclaimed but tend to make bank at the box office. In the past decade alone he's been part of the Fast & Furious franchise, Moana, Black Adam, Jungle Cruise, Jumanji, Baywatch, Shazam!, Skyscraper, Rampage, and more. None of these are the type of high-brow content audiences have come to expect from A24.
In short, we haven't seen Johnson really put his acting skills to the test, but we'll soon have a better idea of what to expect when his next film is released this October. The actor plays a real-life wrestler and mixed martial artist Mark Kerr in The Smashing Machine from director and writer Benny Safdie. He stars alongside Emily Blunt, Bas Rutten, Ryan Bader, and Oleksandr Usyk.
After seeing his biographical sports drama, I think it'll be easier to tell if Johnson has what it takes to lead a tense A24 thriller. People have high expectations from A24, especially where thrillers and horror films are concerned.
Next up for the company is Bring Her Back, the highly-anticipated new film from Talk to Me filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou.