The following contains spoilers for "The Iron Claw."
"The Iron Claw" is a 20th century Greek tragedy. Sean Durkin's two-hour biopic, led by Zac Efron in a career-defining role as former wrestler Kevin Von Erich, tells the devastating cautionary tale of the iconic wrestling Von Erich brothers in the 1980s and the supposed multi-generational curse that haunts their close-knit Texas family.
The Von Erich family's wrestling legacy begins with patriarch Fritz (a terrifying Holt McCallany), a big star in 1960s wrestling known for his signature move, The Iron Claw. He was a three-time wrestling world champion but tragedy struck the family the first time when eldest son Jackie died at six. Already the family had buzzed about curse that followed the Von Erich name, but this is the event that supposedly kicked off the streak in the '80s. Later, Fritz went on to create one of the first-ever renowned wrestling dynasties with his four boys, Kevin (Efron) Kerry (Jeremy Allen White), David (Harris Dickinson) and Mike (Stanley Simmons). The charismatic, muscled-up ensemble is a warm showing of what sibling love and dedication look like.
As the eldest, Kevin is a natural-born leader of the boys and steers them to the right path with compassion and empathy as their wrestling title-hungry and money-obsessed father pushes them beyond their limits in the sport. When they reach past those limits, their edges begin to fray and there's nothing even their love of wrestling and family can do to save them from their fatal ends — some say it is their fate or the curse but the film shows their intense familial circumstances and expectations. Each brother and son, one by one, die in the prime of their lives, leaving Kevin as the sole survivor.
While the heartwrenching true story of the Von Erichs is dramatized in "The Iron Claw," there are still many details the movie leaves out. Here's what you didn't see about the Von Erich family in "The Iron Claw." The following contains descriptions of self-harm.
If you are in crisis, please call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.
01
There were in fact six Von Erich brothers
While the movie accurately includes the heartbreaking death of Jackie, the eldest Von Erich — it omits that there were actually six Von Erich brothers in total. According to the director and writer Sean Durkin, the youngest brother, Chris, was included in earlier versions of the script. But since Chris's death is so similar to his older brothers, Kerry and Mike, who both died by suicide — Durkin decided that “the movie just couldn’t withstand another brother’s death.”
Instead, Mike and Chris' stories are combined into one. In the movie, Mike is the brother who is not interested in wrestling and quite honestly doesn't have the same physique as his ripped brothers. But in real life, he was also well built and was just as tall as his brothers Kevin and Kerry, standing at 6-foot-2. Chris was the smaller brother. He was only 5-foot-5 and was more susceptible to bone fractures because of his asthma medication. After his older brother Mike died by suicide at 23, a teenage Chris became depressed and developed a dependency on drugs. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot at 21 in 1991.
02
Fritz Von Erich and his wife Doris divorced in 1992
At the end of "The Iron Claw," the marriage between Fritz and his wife Doris (Maura Tierney) is teetering on the brink of collapse after the third consecutive death of their sons.
Fritz comes home from a long day of working out on his farm and asks Doris what's for dinner. She tells him she didn't make anything because she wasn't hungry. The camera pans to Doris painting.
It's the first time the audience sees her do something just for herself, acting beyond her domestic responsibilities to her now late boys and emotionally distant husband. In real life, after 42 years of marriage the couple divorced in 1992 shortly after Chris' death and before Kerry's. Doris lived in Hawaii with Kevin and his family in the last years of her life.
03
Fritz Von Erich threatened his son Kevin at gunpoint
Following the compounding loss of his sons and his divorce, Fritz was diagnosed with brain and lung cancer. Fritz, who was in a state of delusion, pulled a gun on Kevin, he said in a VICE documentary "Dark Side of the Ring." He held the gun to his only living son Kevin and said, “You’d kill yourself too if you have the guts.” Kevin replied, “Dad, it takes guts to live, not guts to die.”
Fritz died in his home in Texas in 1997. He lies in the same plot as his late son Kerry.
04
Kevin wasn't the only brother to get married and have children
While Kevin married Pam (Lily James in the movie), had four kids and a plethora of grandchildren and currently lives on a ranch with his extended family, he wasn't the only Von Erich brother to get married and have children.
When David was sent off to Japan to compete for an international title, he was married. His wife Trisha Matter did not appear in the movie. Before Matter, his first marriage was to Candy Mcleod but it fell apart after their infant daughter Natosha, died due to sudden infant death syndrome at 13 weeks old.
Kerry was also married. He was with his wife Catherine Murray for 10 years until they divorced in 1991, just a year before his suicide. They had two daughters together. One who would eventually join the wrestling ring with the Von Erich name, same as her cousins: Kevin's sons Marshall and Ross.
05
The Fake Von Erich Brothers
Wrestling can be gimmicky, and the fake Von Erich brothers prove exactly that. When Fritz's dynasty was dying out, he hired men who weren't part of his family to liven up the Von Erich name, following a wrestling tradition of debuting complete strangers as siblings.
The other wrestler who took on the Von Erich moniker was Lance Von Erich whose real name is William Vaughan. He was a wrestler brought on by Fritz. After Mike's injury, Lance was called in to replace him even though the rest of the brothers and even fans objected to it. The movie doesn't cover the fake Von Erich storyline, but Lance makes an appearance shortly after Mike’s shoulder surgery. In a scene where Kevin is waiting to be tagged into the ring in a tag-team match, Lance played by wrestler Maxwell Jacob Friedman, is inside the ring wrestling instead of Kevin.
Nardos Haile is a staff writer at Salon covering culture. She’s previously covered all things entertainment, music, fashion and celebrity culture at The Associated Press. She resides in Brooklyn, NY.
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