Dwayne Johnson’s New Motorcycle Stunt Movie Bringing Harley’s Max Revolution Back to America

This week, we have some industry news and several new bikes:

• Dwayne Johnson is partnering with Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s label on a new stunt drama called “Free Bird,” where the former wrestler plays a Las Vegas biker suffering from dementia.
• Harley-Davidson is officially reversing its overseas production shift and bringing the liquid-cooled Revolution Max platform back to American shores.
• Yamaha’s R6 has finally been discontinued, while the new 2027 YZF-R9 and R9 SP have come to market a little early due to huge demand.

Let’s start with things happening on two wheels in Hollywood.

Hollywood Hub: Dwayne Johnson to star in new motorcycle action-drama

From the creators of “sing Sing” comes “Free Byrd”

Those of you who like Evel Knievel-type things might want to know what Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has been up to lately, and it’s not more tequila or big cheat meals.

believe or not, Fast and Furious actor Switching gears to produce and play the lead role in this budding action-drama as a Las Vegas motorcycle stuntman. While Johnson has ridden in the past (in his own time) Triumph Rocket III In Rampage and custom Harley-Davidson Softail From Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw Despite this), Dwayne’s rich past World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) guaranteed that the stunting part of the job would probably come naturally.

Well, the film is a new take on the original story told by the same name. Apparently, up and coming free bird It follows an experienced Las Vegas motorcycle stuntman (Johnson) who hides his recent dementia diagnosis from his family and mechanic brother while preparing to risk everything on one final, high-risk daredevil jump. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are attached to the film, although they are leaving the stunt work to Dwayne and taking on the producer role under his Artists Equity label.

If you felt like Hollywood’s golden years were behind it, rest assured there’s a ray of hope: Under Affleck and Damon’s Artist Equity label, actors are guaranteed a fair base salary with a profit-sharing system that allows the entire cast and crew financial bonuses and backend equity if a movie or series is successful. according to hollywood reporter90% of Hollywood’s Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) members do not earn the $25,950 a year required to qualify for union health insurance. Sharing in the long-term profits of a Hollywood film becomes the new way to perform stunts and bear the long-term consequences that follow.

As for Dwayne, it appears the former professional wrestler has a history of dementia in his own family, which allowed him to connect strongly with the film’s script. free bird: :

We’ll keep you posted once we find out what The Rock is cooking up; If it’s anything like Free Bird from 2021, Johnson will have to adapt to a long-distance ramp jumper – a modified MX/dirt bike – or a stripped-down Harley V-twin.

Industry Insider: Harley-Davidson returns Revolution Max production to the US

Restoration under new leadership

America’s tariffs have proved to be a morsel of happiness (see). One of our last news articles For details), many manufacturers have committed to keeping their work within their own countries to cut costs. The most recent OEM to benefit from this pivot to local shores is none other than Harley-Davidson, who recently announced that they are bringing assembly of their liquid-cooled Revolution Max powertrain back to the US to cut costs.

The move ends Harley-Davidson’s decision to send early production of their Revolution Max engines overseas around 2024. Now, machining, powertrain assembly, painting, and final vehicle assembly work are all being moved back to production lines in York, Pennsylvania and Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.

Naturally, this change affects all models with the Revolution Max heart, including:

• Pan America Range
• sportster s
• Nightstar Sport Cruiser Lines

we are told Harley Investors Press Release This change is scheduled to end in 2027, before model-year 2028 production begins; This means skilled domestic union manufacturing jobs will be better protected, creating a more stable supply chain. An OEM with a lot of drama going on Desiring a quiet life for a month or three.

Riders, what are our benefits?

Ultimately, we can expect more reliable domestic parts availability and faster dealership service turnaround times without too many delays in all cargo shipments. Hooray.

Track Weapons: Yamaha launches 2027 YZF-R9 and high-spec R9 SP

…with the final production run of the YZF-R6

Yamaha broke many hearts when they said they would be discontinuing the R6 in 2020; Now, we’re told Yamaha is implementing one final, decidedly made-to-order production run – two strict booking windows – for its final batch of track-only R6s.

And all this is happening while the brand is releasing its 2027 YZF-R9/SP early due to ridiculously high demand.

according to zigwheelsThere are two windows for these final production runs of the Yamaha YZF-R6 going to be this summer (in 2026), with the dates as follows:

• Window 1: July 1 to July 31
• Window 2: August 1 to August 31

Once these final orders are produced and delivered in February 2027, factory tooling will be discontinued, and the Yamaha R6 line will be permanently discontinued worldwide. We’ll be forced to say sayonara, it was nice knowing you.

Amid the funeral rites of the R6 inline-four, Yamaha has officially answered the demands of sportbike enthusiasts the world over with an updated triple growl for the new year. Apparently, demand for Yamaha’s new YZF R9/SP has been so high that the company had to make manufacturing updates to its factory lines to increase production so that dealerships can actually keep their R9 models in stock.

We can’t help but talk about it, but okay… 🙂

Back to black and white. according to YAMAHAThe 2027 YZF-R9 and the top-shelf SP variants are officially ready for both road and track. Yamaha tells us that both of these bikes continue to use the brilliant 890cc liquid-cooled CP3 inline three-cylinder heart (same as the MT-09 hyper-naked), equipped with an optimized ECU tune and revised gear ratios.

A view of the 2027 model of Yamaha’s R9, which was introduced in early 2026 with a new color scheme due to high demand. Media obtained from Yamaha.

Naturally, Yummy is going with the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” philosophy; Thus, the best cage to house their triple remains the gravity-cast Deltabox frame, billed as “the lightest aluminum frame ever engineered for a Yamaha Supersport model.”Yamaha press release).

Stoppage is handled by high-spec Brembo Stylema monobloc calipers mated to a radial master cylinder, while the electronics package still features a full six-axis IMU that manages good stuff like lean-sensitive traction control, slide control, lift control and cornering ABS. In fact, everything is exactly the same as the 2024 R9, except for an aesthetic overhaul and the brand’s struggle to meet the high demand for these bikes.

Here’s a list of the full features of the R9 Yamaha website: :

2025 YZF-R9 top features

• 890cc liquid-cooled CP3 engine
• Ride-by-Wire Yamaha Chip Controlled Throttle (YCC-T®) System
• aid and slipper clutch
• Yamaha 3rd generation quickshifter
• Lightweight gravity-cast aluminum frame
• Fully adjustable high-spec KYB® front fork
• Fully adjustable high-spec KYB® rear shock
• Brembo® Stylema Calipers
• Brembo® Radial Master Cylinder
• Aerodynamic Winglets
• Full color 5 inch TFT display
• smartphone connectivity
• Advanced six-axis IMU
• Four-level power delivery mode (PWR)
• Nine-level lean-sensitive traction control system (TCS)
• MotoGP®-developed three-stage Slide Control System (SCS)
• Three-level lift control system (LIF)
• Lean-Sensitive Brake Control System (BC) with ABS.
• Rear ABS Off Function
• Two-stage Engine Brake Management (EBM)
• Back Slip Regulator (BSR)
• Launch Control (LC)
• Yamaha Ride Control (YRC) with preset and customizable settings
• Yamaha Variable Speed ​​Limiter (YVSL)
• full led lighting
• intuitive new switchgear
• cruise control

We’re told the new 2027 R9/SP models will arrive at dealerships with a $12,499 MSRP tag – the same as last year, bless Yammy – as well as a new color scheme in “Matte Phantom Blue/Fluo Red.”

In short, while we’re sad to bid farewell to Yamaha’s superb middleweight track demon, we’re more than a little excited to take the new R9/SP out for a spin… if they don’t sell out again, that is. 🙄

*Source from media hollywood reporter, Harley Davidson And YAMAHA*