Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson said Monday he had turned his heavily muscled back on action movie roles to be able to express himself as an actor in his latest film "The Smashing Machine" which premiered in Venice.

The 53-year-old was the day's star attraction at the Venice Film Festival -- his first appearance at a European festival -- where he mixed with arthouse directors and independent movie fans on the Lido.

The "Fast and Furious" star told reporters that he'd taken on previous roles for commercial reasons and "the box office in our business is very loud and it can be very resounding and it can push you into a category and into a corner."

"I understood that, and I made those movies ... some were really good and did well, and some not so," the wrestler-turned-actor confided.

"I just ha

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