Dwayne Johnson Becomes 70-Year-Old Chicken Man for Safdie's Lizard Music
Dwayne Johnson was unrecognisable in Coney Island, Brooklyn on Oct. 20, 2026.
The actor was filming "Lizard Music" in full old-age prosthetics as the Chicken Man, a 70-year-old character at the centre of Benny Safdie's new film, according to Variety.
Set photos show Johnson in a tan bucket hat and long coat. He held a slice of pizza while walking beside young co-star Theo Clark Leber, who carried an oversized lizard plush.
The change goes beyond wardrobe. Johnson has said he shed 30 pounds of muscle to play the part, and sits through a five-hour makeup process to become the 70-year-old, as reported by Deadline. The prosthetic look was created by Kazu Hiro, the makeup artist who also turned Tom Cruise into a geriatric oil baron for "Digger."
"Lizard Music" is based on the children's book of the same name by Daniel Pinkwater. It follows a young boy who spots strange lizard musicians on late-night TV, then befriends a peculiar man with an elderly chicken while trying to track down a secret society of lizard players.
The film reunites Johnson with Safdie after 2025's "The Smashing Machine." Johnson said at the 2025 Toronto Film Festival that Safdie talked him into the role in about 45 minutes.
He has called it "'Willy Wonka' from the mind of Benny Safdie." When he first agreed to reteam, he told Safdie: "I'm your Chicken Man," according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The ensemble includes Rachel McAdams, Colman Domingo, David Krumholtz, Jeff Goldblum, Alicia Silverstone and Regina Hall, with Arya Parvathi also cast in an undisclosed role. The film is a live-action/CGI hybrid, mixing real actors with computer-created characters, and is dated for Christmas Day 2027 from Amazon MGM Studios.
The project first landed at United Artists as a package, industry shorthand for a film offered with star and director already attached. United Artists now operates under the Amazon MGM banner.
For fans, this means a sharp left turn. The Coney Island look is a long way from action-hero mode, and points to a stranger, smaller-scale story built around music, late-night television and one very old chicken.
