Dwayne Johnson is getting Oscar buzz for his upcoming release The Smashing Machine, but it’s his ten-year-old blockbuster action film that’s currently surging up the Netflix streaming charts.
It’s nothing unusual for one of Johnson’s older films to suddenly rampage its way up the streaming charts. The actor’s relatively unheralded movies even sometimes find new life on streamers years after release, movies like Snitch, Faster and The Rundown. These may not have found an audience in theaters, but they make for good movie nights at home.
But Johnson’s blockbusters also make waves on streamers like Netflix, with everything from Skyscraper to Hobbs & Shaw taking their turns on the charts. One of Johnson’s biggest hits is indeed currently pushing aside the compeтιтion on Netflix, even as his new potentially Oscar-worthy film The Smashing Machine prepares to release in theaters.
San Andreas Is A Hit On Netflix Ten Years After Its Theatrical Release
Johnson’s San Andreas sent shockwaves through the box office when it released back in 2015, and it’s currently causing new tremors on the Netflix streaming charts. Pushed on by Johnson’s worldwide bankability, the disaster epic grossed $414 million worldwide in its theatrical run, on a budget of $110 million.
Netflix is San Andreas’ current streaming home, and the film is feeling quite cozy, landing in the #2 position on the streamer’s U.S. chart for September 25. Johnson’s blockbuster failed to unseat global sensation KPop Demon Hunters from #1, where it’s been sitting long enough to usurp another Johnson hit, Red Notice, as the service’s most-watched movie ever.
Why You Should Watch San Andreas
The Smashing Machine marks the beginning of a new chapter in the career of Johnson, as he is seemingly ready to move away from only making blockbuster action vehicles, to take on more challenging roles in movies that could win him critical acclaim alongside box office success.
It’s yet to be seen if audiences will embrace Prestige Rock as they did Box Office Rock, but for those who can’t stomach the sight of Johnson in an Oscar-bait movie directed by a Safdie (even one in which he plays an MMA fighter), there’s always San Andreas.
Johnson’s ten-year-old disaster movie is indeed one of the star’s better action vehicles. He plays a heroic helicopter rescue pilot, and his job suddenly becomes incredibly important, when California is hit by the one-two punch of a huge earthquake and a mᴀssive tsunami.
The action in San Andreas is pretty much non-stop, the destruction level escalating from insane to completely off the charts. The plot manages to narrow its focus from the broad impact of the disaster down to how it affects Johnson and his family, giving the story some emotional stakes.
Johnson has a knack for seeming totally serious amid completely ridiculous circumstances, without looking totally silly himself. San Andreas boasts a solid supporting cast, including Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario, Ioan Gruffud, Archie Panjabi, and Paul Giamatti.
The special effects still look great even ten years after San Andreas came out, as the filmmakers annihilate both Los Angeles and San Francisco in spectacular fashion. Only The Rock could come through such an orgy of destruction unscathed.
