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Yahoo
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Chris Evans Addresses Skipping Cannes Film Festival 2025
was absent from the red carpet at the , where his latest film, Honey Don't!, made its highly anticipated premiere. While his co-stars and director were present at the film's debut, fans were quick to wonder why Evans was missing from the event. The Captain America star was noticeably absent from the red carpet when his latest film, Honey Don't!, premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. The comedy-mystery, directed by Ethan Coen, debuted during the festival's popular Midnight Screenings section. It made quite an impression, receiving a six-minute standing ovation from the audience at the Grand Theatre Lumiere. However, Chris Evans' absence from the premiere and red carpet prompted fans to wonder why he had skipped such a major event. He later clarified any speculation by sharing the reason for his absence on Instagram. In a story shared after the premiere, the actor explained that he decided to stay home for an important family celebration: his mother Lisa's 70th birthday. Evans wrote, 'I wish I could've been with my incredible cast and filmmakers at Cannes, but it was my mother's 70th birthday and there are some things you just can't miss!' Along with the message, he included a photo of his co-stars and director on the red carpet. The Red One star offered his congratulations and support by adding, 'Congrats everyone!!' Alongside Evans, Honey Don't! stars Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza, Charlie Day, and Billy Eichner in pivotal roles. Qualley, Plaza, and Day all attended the big premiere alongside Ethan Coen and posed for press photos. Chris Evans has often shared how much his family means to him. As one of four children, he spoke in a 2017 Esquire interview about how much he values close familial ties. The 43-year-old actor said, 'I've always loved stories about people who put their families before themselves. It's such a noble endeavor. You can't choose your family, as opposed to friends.' Originally reported by Disheeta Maheshwari on The post Chris Evans Addresses Skipping Cannes Film Festival 2025 appeared first on Mandatory.
TECHx
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- TECHx
Aseel Omran Joins Motorola as Brand Ambassador
Home » Top stories » Aseel Omran Joins Motorola as Brand Ambassador Saudi actress and singer Aseel Omran has partnered with Motorola as the brand's new ambassador. This collaboration marks the launch of Motorola's latest premium flip phone, the Razr 60 Ultra, in the Middle East. Born in Riyadh, Aseel Omran is known for her presence on reality shows like Gulf Stars and Hiya wa Huwa . She has over 6.5 million followers on Instagram and has worked with international music producers, including RedOne. Her creative journey and influence make her a powerful voice in the Arab entertainment industry. Omran reflects the values of Motorola—iconic design and cutting-edge innovation. She is seen as a role model for Saudi women. Her ability to connect with youth and her presence in fashion and music align well with Motorola's vision. Motorola aims to blend technology with lifestyle. Previous partnerships with brands like Swarovski, Pantone, and Bose show its commitment to culture and design. The brand's latest collaboration with Omran supports its goal to create deeper connections in the region. According to Motorola, Aseel's personality—bold, innovative, and influential—makes her a strong fit for the campaign. She is also known for supporting causes such as her advocacy with UNHCR. This partnership allows her to connect with her fans in more meaningful ways. 'I'm thrilled to partner with Motorola, a brand that shares my passion for blending iconic style and design with the latest cutting-edge technology,' said Omran. 'I'm excited to use the power of technology to connect with my audience in new and inspiring ways, and to continue empowering women across the Kingdom and the region.' Vinayak Shenoy, Marketing Director, MEA at Motorola, added: 'We're excited to welcome Aseel Omran to the Motorola family as our first ambassador in the Middle East. Aseel's talent and influence make her a role model who has defied cultural norms to define her own path and empower others. She perfectly aligns with our values of 'flipping the script' and 'Make it Iconic.' This partnership will help us reach a wider audience and celebrate cultural diversity, innovation, and collaboration.' The newly launched Motorola Razr 60 Ultra blends design and technology. It is compact and uses premium finishes like Alcantara and real wood. With moto AI integration, the phone offers a smarter user experience. Key features include: Qualcomm Snapdragon® AI engine 68W TurboPower™ fast charging, the fastest in any flip phone Motorola continues to bring lifestyle and innovation together through technology. Aseel Omran's role highlights the brand's commitment to the region and its evolving digital audience.
News18
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News18
Dwayne Johnson Lauds Moms Worldwide In Special Post: ‘We Are Honouring You'
Last Updated: In a touching video, Dwayne Johnson appreciated mothers for all the hard work and sacrifices they make every day. Dwayne Johnson recently shared a sweet message on Mother's Day, honouring 'mamas" around the world. In a touching video, he appreciated them for all the hard work and sacrifices that moms make every day. The actor and former WWE champion mentioned that Mother's Day is a special opportunity to 'say thank you," especially for someone like him, who is a mama's boy. He also shared that he will be spending the day with his mother, Ata Johnson, and wife, Lauren Hashian, by playing Scrabble and jokingly said that he will beat them in the game. The Rock also reminded everyone that mothers should be honoured every day. Taking to Instagram, Johnson said, 'Happy Mother's Day to all you mamas out there. All you beautiful mamas out there. I love you, ladies. I love you mamas. You are around the world holding it down, doing the thing. The juggle, the spinning of the plates, the wearing multiple hats. Doing everything that you do. I love Mother's Day because it's our opportunity to, especially as mama's boy, to say thank you and we love you. We are honouring you today, we should be honouring you every day and please accept this flower of love and gratitude at your doorstep today." Dwayne Johnson further mentioned that if a young boy grows up with a mother who teaches him to be kind, caring, respectful and loving, he has a better chance of growing up to be a good and decent man. He said it's not always guaranteed because mistakes happen. He thanked all mothers for everything they do and reminded them to take care of themselves, not just on Mother's Day or special occasions, but every day. He admitted that it's not always easy for moms to put themselves first because life can be very challenging, but still encouraged them to try. Johnson said he has seen how tough it can be and understands their struggles. Sharing his plans for the day, the Rock said, 'In honour of Mother's Day, I'm going to have my mom come over today. We're going to play Scrabble with Lauren, and it's just going to be the three of us. And you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to let them win, because that's how I was raised. I'm a good man. I'm only kidding. I'm going to beat their ass. I mean, that's being a good man, right? It's fair, it's fair." After starring in Red One, Dwayne Johnson will next be seen in The Smashing Machine, where he will appear as the UFC champion Mark Kerr. The movie is based on the 2002 documentary of the same name and is scheduled to release on October 3. First Published:
Telegraph
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Hollywood's biggest joke? How The Rock reinvented himself
The thing about machines is that we expect them to keep chugging on – to never break or falter. In the late 1990s, that was true of Mark 'The Smashing Machine' Kerr, a mixed martial artist who became addicted to painkillers at the height of a career that helped put UFC on the map. And it's also true of the one-man multiplex behemoth about to play Kerr in one of 2025's most intriguing big-screen dramas. This October will see Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson showcase his dramatic acting chops for the first time, in The Smashing Machine, the new movie from Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems). Produced by indie powerhouse A24 – makers of Everything Everywhere All At Once, Midsommar and more – it's being talked about as a reset of sorts for one of the true commercial juggernauts of our time; an action giant with over $15bn in box office receipts to his name, but whose entertainment empire has started to sputter over the last three years. If you follow Hollywood, you'll have read the stories. How in 2022, Black Adam, Johnson's attempt at a DC superhero franchise, suffered a catastrophic failure to launch. And how, shortly after, he was accused of disrespectful behaviour during production of his next blockbuster, Red One. A report by The Wrap alleged that Johnson was frequently late to set and habitually peed in water bottles that he'd hand to his assistant to dispose of. The former wrestler admitted that, on both counts, 'Yeah, that happens.' When Red One – in which Johnson teams up with Ryan Reynolds to rescue a kidnapped Santa Claus – eventually hit cinemas, it wasn't the deluge of career-worst reviews that made brand Rock suffer. Nor was it the movie's dismal box office performance, making back just $87m at the global box office against a $250m budget. (Amazon contested reports of its financial failure, claiming that a record-breaking 50 million worldwide viewers in its first four days on Prime Video). The Rock-led blockbusters had flopped before, critically and commercially; it probably won't surprise you, for example, to learn that 2010's Tooth Fairy wasn't exactly declared this generation's Citizen Kane. The real damage, then, was to Johnson's reputation as one of Hollywood's rare 'nice guys' – an integral part of his appeal. The Rock's on-screen charisma alone wasn't what sent audiences rushing to cinemas for movies like Jumanji, Moana, San Andreas and the star's six Fast and Furious outings. Instead, it was his humble off-screen persona, forged in an American Dream-esque origin story, that powered his golden touch at the box office. To millions of moviegoers (394m on Instagram, to be precise), Johnson was a mixed-heritage hero who had bench-pressed his way out of impoverished conditions, taking over wrestling and then Hollywood, with the White House potentially next. In 2021, a Piplsay poll discovered that 46 percent of Americans would support Johnson were he to run for President; 'I don't think our Founding Fathers ever envisioned a six-four, bald, tattooed, half-black, half-Samoan, tequila-drinking, pick up truck-driving, fanny pack-wearing guy joining their club,' was his response, adding that 'it'd be my honour' to follow in the footsteps of Terminator-turned- governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who made a similar transition into politics. Today, a march on Washington feels fanciful. As it stands, his reputation and box office reliability both appear to be on the ropes – which is why this week's trailer for The Smashing Machine, in which the 52-year-old is seen breaking down in tears and flexing his dramatic muscles, drew plenty of attention. From the prosthetics and wig disguising his recognisable features to anguished scenes of marital strife with Emily Blunt shot without glamorous Hollywood lighting, Safdie and Johnson are clearly signposting that Fast X Part II, this is not. Is the plan to reinvent himself as a serious dramatic force? It seems that's an avenue Johnson at least wants to forge a path towards. Yes, there are blockbusters to come from the star: a live-action Moana here, a Disney title named Monster Jam there. But there's also the curious prospect of collaboration with Martin Scorsese on the docket too, his first time partnering with an auteur since Richard Kelly's Southland Tales in 2006. The film is a Hawaii-set crime thriller, adapted from a non-fiction book that Johnson is co-writing. Leonardo DiCaprio and The Rock's The Smashing Mouth co-star Emily Blunt will star alongside him, in a project apparently close to the former wrestler's heart – though he now lives in Virginia, Hawaiian history and folklore remains a passion of his, and he remains an advocate for Hawaiian causes; in 2023, he pledged $10 million to a People's Fund of Maui to support victims of devastating wildfires there. Whether or not The Rock has the talent to pull off such a transformation, though, remains to be seen. Unlike most Hollywood stars, the actor has been laser-focused on four-quadrant superstardom since swapping the spandex and suplexes of WWE for the lights of Tinseltown. Peek at the filmographies of Elizabeth Olsen, Christian Bale, Cillian Murphy and other A-listers and you'll find intimate dramas shot in between their commitments to big-screen franchises. Not The Rock, who has stuck rigidly to explosive blockbusters, with only the occasional glimpse at something more grounded, such as Michael Bay's true-life crime thriller Pain & Gain (2013). That is, till now. 'I'm at a point in my career where I want to push myself,' he told Variety last year. 'I want to make films that matter, that explore humanity and explore struggle [and] pain.' There's certainly plenty of pain to explore in The Smashing Machine. With a script based on a bruising 2002 HBO documentary, and Kerr's memoir, it has the potential to be a The Wrestler-esque portrait of the blood, sweat and muscle tears required to be a fighter – something that Johnson, whose father and grandfather were also wrestlers, can probably bring personal experience to. On-screen and off, the sub-genre of 'fighting films' is tried-and-tested ground for redemption arcs. Long before last month's dispiriting homophobic remarks on Celebrity Big Brother, Mickey Rourke earned a late-career resurgence after decades of bad press in The Wrestler. It's also no coincidence either that a film about a fighter – 2001 Oscar-winner Ali – was Will Smith's ticket to being recognised as a serious actor, shedding his TV sitcom and Men In Black funnyman baggage. And it also helps Johnson's chances that, in Benny Safdie, he has a collaborator who's helped others discover their darker sides before. Safdie's 2019's Uncut Gems (co-directed with his brother, Josh) saw screwball comedy icon Adam Sander reborn as a desperate jeweller, in a cardiac arrest-causing crime thriller. His 2023 series The Curse, meanwhile, saw TV prankster Nathan Fielder play against type as an insecure husband to Emma Stone in a surreal drama about gentrification. Johnson has had to reinvent himself before – the most obvious example being his then-unprecedented leap from the ring into major Hollywood productions in 2001's The Mummy Returns. With wrestling at a cultural peak at the turn of the millennium, the star was cast by Universal in a bid to score some of the sport's booming audience. Few people had any idea then that The Rock would prove so effective in his brief cameo that audiences would demand his character's own film, 2002's The Scorpion King, kickstarting one of the most lucrative acting careers in recent Hollywood history. Look deeper into his history, and there are further rebirths. When he was 18, Johnson suffered a shoulder injury that meant having to rip up plans of becoming an American football star. The setback plunged him into a deep depression before he set his sights on wrestling: 'I didn't want to do anything. I had never experienced anything like that,' he told the Hollywood Reporter in 2014. The prospect of The Rock reinventing himself once more, this time into a formidable dramatic force – one who can pull on that experience of depression and other cloudier parts of his past – is exciting. And not just because Hollywood, in a time of tanking theatrical receipts, needs stars like him to pull audiences into multiplexes. Historically, Johnson has proved a uniquely cross-partisan presence in our pop culture. After the poll that indicated almost half of Americans were already backing a Rock Presidential run, the star had not one but two sets of visitors knocking on his door. Representatives of both the Democrats and Republicans came calling in the hopes that he'd run for their party, Johnson revealed in 2023. It's a story that speaks to how The Rock's gravitational pull once defied political tribalism; he was popular among supporters on both sides of the aisle. In a divided time, the star has previously been one of the rare things that people appeared to agree on: a feat more impressive than any of the superheroes performed by his characters on-screen. Even Gen Z audiences who weren't born at the time when The Rock made his transition into film star seem to love him; a surprising poll from entertainment data firm National Research Group recently saw him top a list of their most-beloved actors, beating Zendeya, Tom Holland and co. The Rock's career might have faltered lately, but The Smashing Machine might just be the oil change that gets his career purring again. Let's face it, Hollywood – and America – could probably do with it. The Smashing Machine is released in UK cinemas on 3 October 2025 The Rock's five best performances 1. The Other Guys (2010) Johnson's funniest supporting role. This Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg buddy comedy featured The Rock as an action hero caricature, whose super smooth crime-busting exploits – dispatching zingers as he dispatches villains – parodied his public perception. One scene – in which Johnson and partner Samuel L Jackson leap from a building to catch their criminal prey – is up there with director McKay's best ever gags. Which is saying something: McKay is the filmmaker responsible for Anchorman and Step Brothers. The Rock's sharp timing and willingness to send himself up here proves him as effective a funnyman as any of the comics the film-maker typically pairs with. 2. San Andreas (2015) Remember disaster movies? Johnson does, as evidenced by his mid-2010s attempt to bring Roland Emmerich-esque tales of toppling city skylines and famous landmarks on fire back into the zeitgeist. 2018's Skyscraper – about a former FBI agent who has to rescue his family from a burning building in Hong Kong – was fine, but this effort three years earlier was a premium popcorn thrillride. Johnson plays a helicopter pilot forced to save the day when an enormous earthquake strikes LA. To make matters worse, his daughter (Alexandra Daddario) is among those caught up in the chaos. Gleeful special-effects adventure of a very tall order. Sky Store, Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV+ 3. The Mummy Returns (2001) Where it all began. This sequel to Nineties smash The Mummy was Johnson's first acting role, and feels like an Imhotep-esque ancient relic in 2025. Not because the CGI is so ropey (though it is) and not because family adventures like this have all but ceased production (though they have). It's an unusual rewatch in 2025 because back then, The Rock still had something to prove as an actor. In his cameo as the villainous Scorpion King, Johnson works in service of the film instead of the movie being sculpted around his image. The result? A fun romp in which Johnson frights as a reborn warrior who sold his soul to Anubis. Sky Store, Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV+, NOW 4. Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle (2016) It probably says something about the type of raucous spectacle The Rock is drawn to that he's starred in not one but two different blockbusters titled 'Welcome To The Jungle' (the other a 2003 flop about a loan shark). This film and its 2018 sequel, though, make for fun franchise fodder. Rather than try to recapture the magic of the first Jumanji adventure starring Robin Williams, The Rock and co-stars Karen Gillian, Kevin Hart and Jack Black are allowed to bicker hilariously in a dangerous video game world, in this sequel only tenuously connected to the original. Sky Store, Amazon Prime Video (included in subscription), AppleTV+ 5. Pain & Gain (2013) His Fast and Furious films are a better showcase of his action talents. And Moana's not without its fans, nor its importance to Johnson himself as a Hawaiian. But this last slot goes to Pain & Gain in part for its surprising sobriety. Michael Bay is an explosion in human form. 2013, meanwhile, saw The Rock and Mark Wahlberg – then both in their early forties – in prime, pumped-muscle action figure form. How is it that this collaboration ended up being one of the more thought-provoking titles on each of their resumes? Yes, it's a ludicrous tale of gangland violence. But its dramatic scenes contain glimpses of what The Rock is capable of when he comes back down to Earth. Sky Store, Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV+, NOW
The Guardian
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Rock'n'roles: Dwayne Johnson films – ranked!
Dwayne Johnson is about to violently switch gears. His next films include a Benny Safdie drama about an MMA fighter battling addiction and a true-crime drama produced by Martin Scorsese. The reason for this abrupt handbrake turn towards grownup film-making seems to be Red One; a duff Christmas action film. During its production, tales of Johnson's backstage behaviour leaked out: the star was said to frequently be late, and would habitually hand his assistant bottles of urine rather than walk to the toilet. It was the biggest knock to The Rock since his career began. But onwards and upwards. Call it bad timing or hubris, but Johnson's eventual stint as a superhero felt like too little, too late. Black Adam stood out from the crowd in that his character actually killed people, but the film itself was a mess, and audiences were groggy from too many superheroes. It did so badly that DC had to switch creative approaches entirely to move on from it. The Rock does Hasselhoff. What could go wrong? Well, on the evidence of Baywatch, quite a lot. The film kept a lot of what made the 1990s TV show so popular – nearly everyone in it was hot and skimpily clothed – but the addition of ironic, self-aware humour made it feel a little like Johnson wanted to have his cake and eat it. A rite of passage in any action star's career is the moment when they have to make a comedy that forces them to be soft. In other words, Tooth Fairy is The Rock's Kindergarten Cop, or his Mr Nanny, or (if we want to be cruel) his The Pacifier. He plays a mean hockey player who is forced to don wings and collect children's teeth at night. 'You might just be the worst tooth fairy ever,' says Julie Andrews, who is also in this for some reason. I'll admit to a grudging soft spot for this one, simply for how relentlessly weird it is. It's a Jules Verne adaptation in which The Rock variously sings ukulele songs, uses 3D technology to ping berries off his pecs at the camera and chases Michael Caine around on a giant bee. Underrated. 'Slow justice is no justice' said the posters for this vaguely Point-Blank-esque revenge thriller about an ex-con working his way down a list of people he wants to kill. In truth, Faster isn't all that fast, but it is the sort of film where a character can be shot full in the head and shake it off as a flesh wound. A big historical epic based on Steve Moore's comic book, this is another one of Johnson's films known better for the narrative around it than the film itself. Johnson transformed his body for the role, spending six months inhaling calories while living 'like a monk' in Budapest. The end result is entirely forgettable, though. An inoffensive IP grab in which Johnson and Emily Blunt do their best to breathe life into a 70-year-old theme park boat ride. Given that Pirates of the Caribbean (similarly based on a Disney attraction) was once the biggest film around, Jungle Cruise fared more modestly – although it's entertaining enough, and Johnson has some enjoyably snappy chemistry with Blunt. There's no way to sugar-coat this: for a while, Johnson's stock in trade was churning out a stream of identical disaster movies. This is the one that really wants to be Die Hard, the one where Neve Campbell plays his wife. It's the one where The Rock jumps off one skyscraper and then lands on another one. It's fine. Technically, The Rock has little more than an extended cameo here, in Stephen Merchant's biopic about the rise of real-life WWE star Paige. The film helped to launch a boatload of careers, from Florence Pugh to Jack Lowden, and they're responsible for all the heavy lifting. All Johnson has to do here is coast on his charisma, something he pulls off with aplomb. In which The Rock adapts a video game from 1986. The arcade game Rampage very much felt like an unlicensed attempt to trade on the popularity of King Kong and Godzilla, and the movie did nothing to change that. The star attraction is George, an enormous albino gorilla. But Johnson, playing his handler (who also gets to fire guns and punch a load of people), is the secret draw. It takes a lot to manufacture chemistry with a big ape that doesn't exist, but he achieves it effortlessly. Maybe the most pure fun a Dwayne Johnson film has ever been. The Rock (and he was The Rock back then, none of this 'Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson' nonsense) made his feature debut with this sequel to The Mummy. In time his character would receive his own spin-off in the form of the Scorpion King, and from this evidence it's clear why. As the villain of the piece, Johnson oozes menace here; although the film is now notorious for its spectacularly shoddy CGI, which even at the time had to be seen to be believed, you can still see his star being born in real time. This film represented a deliberate step back towards reality for both its star (who had just made a GI Joe movie) and its director, Michael Bay (who had been focusing on Transformers films). Pain & Gain is a true-crime thriller based on the story of some Miami bodybuilders who cluelessly embarked on a series of kidnappings and murders. Johnson is paired with Mark Wahlberg, and they both get a lot of mileage from playing vain dimwits. Some might say it's a little distasteful to turn an actual murder into a comedy; if you can park that, though, the film is a wonderful reminder of Johnson's strengths. Make no mistake, Be Cool is a mess. A shapeless, formless, cameo-filled attempt to meld a sequel to Get Shorty out of thin air, the film has very little to offer. Johnson plays Elliot, a gay bodyguard with dreams of becoming an actor, and, in a puddle of sludge, he outshines everyone with his wit, timing and sheer physicality. You shouldn't go and seek out Be Cool, because it will be the most miserable couple of hours of your life, but I'm sure Elliot has some compilation clips on YouTube. On social media, The Rock makes much of his infinite determination. If he sets his mind on something, there's nothing he can't achieve. The Jumanji films are probably the greatest evidence of that. On paper, only a madman would attempt to remake a classic like Jumanji, especially following in the footsteps of a once-in-a-generation talent like Robin Williams. And yet The Rock did it. In truth, this isn't so much a remake as a reimagining; the original saw Williams escape the game into real life, whereas here The Rock dives straight in. But he's backed by a lot of talent in Jack Black, Kevin Hart and Karen Gillan. The fact that Johnson is playing a shy teenager injected into the body of an action hero is also a very sweet touch. Johnson's presence in Adam McKay's comedy is something of a red herring. This is really a film about Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg, two incompetent New York cops who are forced to step up when the city's two best policemen are killed. Johnson plays one of the latter, which means his screen time is mainly confined to the first scene. However, that scene manages to offer a pitch-perfect distillation of The Rock's career until then. It's a high-stakes, gormless action sequence that, like almost all of his films, pays absolutely no mind to collateral damage. Johnson destroys everything (ultimately including himself) in pursuit of a villain, and, despite wrecking half a city in the process, is still considered a hero. If it wouldn't be so repetitive, these films could have made up half this list. The Fast & Furious series is the reason why The Rock came to be known as a franchise saver. Before he arrived, these were boring, slightly po-faced films about street racers. Then he came along and transformed the entire franchise into a head-smashing parade of ever sillier stunts. Starting with 2011's Fast Five, Johnson punched and shot his way through countless baddies – and navigated what might be the world's most unintentionally hilarious real-life feud with co-star Vin Diesel – until the universe simply couldn't contain his might and he ducked out. A cameo at the end of Fast X (a film so aggressively OTT that it feels like a peyote trip) hinted at a return in the series finale. Here's hoping. A clear winner from Johnson's disaster movie days, San Andreas is a loving homage to the work of Roland Emmerich, centring on what might happen should the San Andreas fault devastate the west coast of America. This essentially involves The Rock trading up through more and more ostentatious modes of transport as he attempts to outrun an earthquake. It's all profoundly silly, from the American flag that unfurls at the end to the nagging suspicion that Johnson is never sure how attracted he is supposed to be to Alexandra Daddario, who plays his goodness, it's entertaining. A buddy movie starring two half-formed offshoots from the Fast & Furious movies, Hobbs and Shaw felt like the most unnecessary film going when it was released. And yet you'll never find a film with such a confident grasp of exactly how silly it is. Two lunkheads (Johnson and Jason Statham) squabble as they attempt to defeat Idris Elba's genetically enhanced super-soldier. Every set piece here is stupider than the last – They fly fighter jets! They fight baddies with clubs! They drive cars through the top of skyscrapers! – and it's baffling to think that this is a spin-off of a film where some people have a car race. But it's so giddy (thanks mainly to co-star Vanessa Kirby, who palpably cannot believe she gets to do this) that the whole thing feels irresistible. Ultimately, no film project of Dwayne Johnson's has ever used his actorly skill set quite as effectively as Moana. Yes, it's an animation, but The Rock gets to sing and goof about while simultaneously being tough and heroic. It feels as though his character, Maui, was written especially for him, with his oafish charm – and there's a lightness of touch here that gets lost in all the head-smashing of the rest of his career. He is so good as Maui that the thought of a live-action Moana remake starring Johnson (which is happening, and happening soon) may not immediately fill you with dread. That's as high as praise gets.
