For decades, The Rock has been the biggest movie star on the planet, churning out blockbusters that dominate the box office but rarely trouble the awards season voters. That narrative officially changed this morning. After taking a massive creative risk by stepping away from the jungle adventures and superhero spandex to star in the gritty A24 drama The Smashing Machine, the “Final Boss” has earned his very first Golden Globe nomination. It’s a validating moment for The Rock, who stripped away his trademark charisma and eyebrow raises to disappear into the role of MMA legend Mark Kerr.

The nomination places The Rock in the prestigious Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama category, putting him shoulder-to-shoulder with heavy hitters like Jeremy Allen White and Michael B. Jordan.

He isn’t the only one from the film getting flowers, either; his co-star Emily Blunt also secured a nomination for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role. While WWE fans have known for years that The Rock can control a crowd with a microphone, this nomination proves he can hold a frame with raw, dramatic acting chops.

Critics Are Smelling What The Rock Is Cooking

For the first time in his career, The Rock is a legitimate critical darling. The pivot to working with an auteur director like Benny Safdie and a studio like A24 was a calculated move to showcase his range, and reviewers have taken notice. The consensus is that this is a transformative performance. The Australian’s Stephen Romei noted that you don’t even need to be a fight fan to engage, urging audiences to “watch it for the human drama and the fine acting.”

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Other critics highlighted just how successfully The Rock shed his larger-than-life persona. Bob Mondello of NPR called the film a “sharp showcase for Johnson’s remarkable physical transformation,” while John Nugent of Empire Magazine boldly predicted that “Johnson is about to win some awards.” It’s a far cry from the critical reception of Black Adam or Red Notice. Richard Lawson from Rolling Stone praised the film’s “sensitivity and modesty,” a tone that allowed The Rock to display a vulnerability we’ve never seen from him before.

A Box Office Reality Check

However, the road to the Golden Globes wasn’t paved with gold at the ticket booth. While the critics swooned, the general audience largely stayed home. The Smashing Machine is undeniably a box office bomb. Reports indicate the film cost around $50 million to make but brought in only about half of that during its theatrical run. It opened to a career-worst $6 million, a shocking number for a man whose movies usually print money on opening weekend.

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Despite the financial loss, The Rock remains defiant and proud of the work. He told The Hollywood Reporter that this project was about challenging himself to “rip myself open” and “transform,” explicitly stating that “not one time did I think about box office.” It was a passion project meant to alter the trajectory of his acting career, and with a Golden Globe nod now on his resume, he can argue it was a price worth paying.

Will The Rock show up with his new, surprisingly slim, physique? We’ll find out if he takes home the trophy when the award ceremony airs on January 11.