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Despite a bullish promotional campaign and terrific reviews, Dwayne Johnson‘s pivot to drama, The Smashing Machine, is flailing hard in its box office debut. The movie is currently eyeing a quarter of its projected opening weekend gross, having been blindsided by Taylor Swift’s new concert movie, which is being distributed exclusively by AMC Theaters. Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl is looking at around $32 million in its first weekend of release, which, while good enough for a number one debut, is around a third of what her Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film earned in its debut weekend a couple of years ago.
The Eras Tour film was released in conjunction with the record-breaking world tour, while the new documentary’s release coincides with the debut of her latest album. The Showgirl movie was announced only a couple of weeks ago, by which time promotions for The Smashing Machine were already underway. However, Swift’s movie was able to secure the majority of the Premium Large Format screens this weekend, sidelining both The Smashing Machine and last week’s holdover, One Battle After Another, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
Johnson and DiCaprio’s movies were both sold as big-screen experiences designed for IMAX, among various other formats. However, The Smashing Machine is now cratering. It’s looking at around $6 million in its opening weekend, down from the $20 million that was being projected a couple of weeks ago, and the $10 million that was being projected as recently as a few days ago. The movie made around $2.7 million on opening day. Directed by Benny Safdie and also starring Emily Blunt, The Smashing Machine is generating Oscar buzz for Johnson, who is attempting to rebrand himself as a serious performer.
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Having earned excellent reviews, the movie holds a 73% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics’ consensus reads, “Dwayne Johnson goes the distance with his transformative turn as Mark Kerr in The Smashing Machine, a gritty biopic that sidesteps cliché even at the expense of narrative satisfaction while still landing the dramatic body blows that count.” Swift’s new movie doesn’t yet have an official RT score, although its audience score is currently sitting at a near-perfect 98%. While the Swifties’ excitement will almost certainly ensure that the film is front-loaded in its box office debut, it could also hit $40 million if it displays a more conventional trajectory. You can watch both films in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
- Release Date
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October 3, 2025
- Runtime
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123 minutes
- Director
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Benny Safdie
- Writers
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Benny Safdie
- Producers
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Beau Flynn, David Koplan, Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, Hiram Garcia
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