Dwayne Johnson’s Failed Biopic Tops Streaming Charts

A Dwayne Johnson sports biopic that wasn’t a financial hit during its theatrical run appears to have found a wider audience on streaming. The Smashing Machine, which recently became available on HBO Max, has managed to become the top-viewed movie on the streaming platform. Notably, the film hit theaters in October 2025, and despite garnering positive reviews from critics, became a box office bomb.

The Smashing Machine is #1 on streaming charts after HBO Max debut

As of January 27, 2026, The Smashing Machine is the #1 movie on HBO Max according to FlixPatrol. The film surpassed the viership numbers for Sinners (#2), which recieved the most Oscar nominations this year with a record 16 nominations, One Battle After Another (#3), Twilight (#4), Weapons (#5), John Wick (#6), John Wick: Chapter 2 (#7), The Twilight Saga: New Moon (#8), The Brutalist (#9), and John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (#10).

Notably, the film was snubbed at the Oscars this year in numerous categories, only getting a nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Meanwhile, it secured two nominations at the Golden Globes — Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for Dwayne Johnson and Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture for Emily Blunt.

Following its release, the film underperformed at the box office. It grossed an estimated $21 million globally against a reported budget of $50 million. In an Instagram post, Johnson expressed gratitude to those who saw the film in theaters and admitted that no one can “control box office results.”

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film boasts solid critical and audience scores of 70% certified fresh and 74%, respectively. Meanwhile, on Metacritic, the film has a metascore of 65 and a user score of 5.4 — the former pointing to “generally favorable” reception and the latter denoting “mixed or average” reception.

The film’s story explores the professional and personal life of former amateur wrestler and MMA fighter Mark Kerr (Johnson), which includes his success and challenges in the UFC world and his complicated relationship with his girlfriend, Dawn Staples (Blunt).

Benny Safdie wrote, directed, and edited the film. He also served as a producer along with Johnson, Eli Bush, Hiram Garcia, Dany Garcia, and David Koplan.

Source: Comingsoon.net