Despite the fact that Ben Safdi's film 'The Smashing Machine' last year did not achieve great box office success for Dwayne Johnson, the actor remains enthusiastic. He is preparing to collaborate again with director Ben Safdi on a completely new project titled 'Lizard Music,' which is intended for a young audience.
A feature of this new picture will be another radical experiment with Dwayne Johnson's appearance. This time, he will play the role of an elderly person aged 70. Recently, shots from the filming of 'Lizard Music' in Brooklyn, New York, have appeared. These photos surprised fans because they could not believe that the man in a beige jacket, bucket hat, blue shirt, and patterned tie was none other than Dwayne Johnson, former WWE champion and Hollywood action star.
To create the look for the film 'Lizard Music,' Dwayne and Ben Safdi once again used prosthetics, or artificial makeup. In 'The Smashing Machine,' Johnson underwent significant changes in his appearance to embody the character of former MMA fighter Mark Kerr. While prosthetic makeup was used for 'Lizard Music' to make 54-year-old Dwayne appear 16 years older, his character in the film is called 'Chicken Man.'
'Lizard Music' is based on the popular children's book of the same name by Daniel Pinkwater, published in 1976. The story centers around a little boy who one night sees strange lizards playing music on television. After this, he befriends a mysterious man who has an old chicken. The plot promises an interesting blend of fantasy, mystery, and unusual characters.
In the film, besides Dwayne Johnson, actors such as Rachel McAdams, Coleman Domingo, Jeff Goldblum, Alicia Silverstone, and Regina Hall will also participate. The task of transforming Dwayne Johnson into this new look was assigned to prosthetic makeup artist Kazu Hiro. Previously, Kazu worked on Alejandro Inárritu's film 'Digger,' where he portrayed an American oilman aged 65, and also participated in changing Dwayne's appearance in 'The Smashing Machine.'
Nevertheless, despite the massive changes made for these films, it did not guarantee box office success. 'The Smashing Machine,' shot on a budget of about $50 million, collected approximately $21.1 million worldwide. The film 'Digger' also failed to meet audience expectations at the box office.
Previously, at a special session dedicated to his career at the Toronto International Film Festival, Dwayne expressed his enthusiasm for yet another change in his image. He noted: 'I am very happy that I am being given the opportunity to change again, as I did in 'The Smashing Machine.' It means I will have to eat less chicken.'
During the transformation process, the actor lost approximately 30 pounds, which is about 13.6 kilograms. 'Lizard Music,' which is being filmed with support from Amazon MGM Studios, is scheduled to be released in theaters on December 25th of next year, for Christmas.
Before the release of 'Lizard Music,' Dwayne Johnson will also appear in a Christmas release in his usual action persona. He will once again play Dr. Alexander Brewston in Jake Cassden's film 'Jumanji: The Open World.' This film is considered the fifth and final installment in the 'Jumanji' franchise. Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jones, Aquafina, Alex Wolff, and Danny DeVito will also participate in it.