2008’s The Wrestler showed moviegoers who have no interest in professional wrestling that there are dramatic, deeply personal stories to be told within the sport. And we’ve seen many films set in the world of wrestling, from Fighting With My Family to Cassandro. But there’s none more anticipated, certainly by me, than The Iron Claw, which features a star-studded cast as the talented, cursed Von Erich wrestling family.
Sean Durkin, known for Martha Mary May Marlene and The Nest, writes and directs The Iron Claw, based on the story of the Texas-based Von Erich wrestling family. Powerful forces within professional wrestling for decades, the family is said to be victims of a terrible curse that impacted their children in the 1980s. Five of patriarch Fritz Von Erich’s six sons, most of them professional wrestlers like him, would precede him in death.
Zac Efron plays Kevin Von Erich, with The Bear‘s Jeremy Allen White (who apparently gained 40lbs of muscle) as Kerry “Texas Tornado” Von Erich, Harris Dickinson as David Von Erich, believed by many to be the most talented son, and Stanley Simons as Mike Von Erich. Holt McCallany plays Fritz Von Erich, joined by Lily James, Maura Tierney, and real-life professional wrestlers AEW World Heavyweight Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman as Lance Von Erich, Chavo Guerrero Jr. as The Sheik, and Ryan Nemeth as Gino Hernandez.
I can’t tell you how excited I am for this film. The Von Erich family’s tragic downfall was something I knew about as a kid who adored professional wrestling. And now as an adult who still loves sports entertainment, I look back at those years and wonder what might’ve been if the Von Erich sons had reached their full potential.
Here’s the synopsis: The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s. Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the biggest stage in sports.” Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Stanley Simons, Maura Tierney, with Holt McCallany and Lily James.
The Iron Claw opens in theaters on December 22nd, courtesy of A24.
