Dwayne Johnson is 'slimming down' to play 70 year old Chicken Man in 'whimsical' new film

Dwayne Johnson is losing weight to play a 70-year-old man in Lizard Music.

The 53-year-old wrestler turned Hollywood actor will reunite with The Smashing Machine director Benny Safdie in an upcoming movie adaptation of Daniel Pinkwater's novel about a young boy who befriends the Chicken Man to find an invisible island full of intelligent lizard musicians.

Speaking during a career retrospective at Toronto Film Festival, he said: "This is me slimmed down. In the process of slimming down. I still have a long way to go.

"I’m so excited to get a chance to hopefully transform again like I was able to do in Smashing Machine.

“[It means] eating less chicken.”

The Rock has lost most of the 30lbs of muscle he piled on to play MMA fighter Mark Kerr in The Smashing Machine as he transforms for the new role.

Johnson described the film as a "whimsical" tale, which focuses on a boy who ends up watching a late night broadcast of lizards playing music.

He passes through a hidden door and meets the Chicken Man, leading to a wild and wonderful adventure.

He recalled: "Benny pitched me this after [Smashing Machine].

"And after about 45 minutes, this pitch ended and I said, 'I am your Chicken Man.' "

The new role is another career pivot from Johnson, who was in tears after The Smashing Machine received a 15 minute standing ovation at Venice Film Festival last week.

The actor admitted he enjoyed the chance to show off his dramatic range after feeling "pigeonholed" with multiple roles in big-budget action and comedy films.

Speaking at a press conference in Venice, he said: "I just had this burning desire and this voice that was saying, 'Well, again, what if?'

"But what if there is more and what if I can? And a lot of times it's harder for us to, or at least for me, to know what you're capable of when you've been pigeonholed into something.

"When you're in Hollywood, as we all know, it had become about box office and you chase the box office.

"And the box office in our business that we know is very loud and it can be very resounding, and it could push you into a category and into a corner. And 'This is your lane' and 'This is what you do' and 'This is what people want you to be' and 'This is what Hollywood wants you to be.'"

The Jungle Cruise actor doesn't feel he has anything left to prove in Hollywood and is relishing the chance to satisfy his own career desires.

He said: "I don't think it's anything to prove to Hollywood as much as it's just for me now.

"And the truth is, I looked around a few years ago, and I started to think, 'Am I living my dream or am I living other people's dreams?'

"You could either fall in line and go, 'Well, it's status quo. Things are good. I don't want to rock the boat.' Or go, 'No, I I want to live my dreams now and do what I want to do and tap into the stuff that I want to tap into.' "