Chavo Guerrero trained all the actors in preparation for “The Iron Claw,” but one of them did some added work in light of playing a pro wrestling patriach.
Speaking with SEScoops’ Dominic DeAngelo, Guerrero spoke to the level of commitment by veteran actor Holt McCallany, who took on the role of Fritz Von Erich in the new film by A24.
Before production even started, McCallany, who is greatly known for his work on Netflix’s Mindhunter, already put some time in the squared circle.
“He comes on set and it wasn’t like he just stepped foot in the ring. He went like a month out. He went to Gleason’s gym in New York and was getting trained in pro wrestling by Johnny Rodz who’s a family friend. He was great friends with my dad. So when he came on, I was like,’Wow, like he put the effort,’ he was already ready to go and he’s an ex-boxer.’ So Holt’s a very intense guy, anyway. So he was ready to go.”
In 2011, McCallany previously played a pugilist in the title role of the short-lived FX television drama, “Lights Outs,” so he’s no stranger to getting physical on screen.
As a matter of fact, Guerrero talked about having to slow Holt’s intensity down as he brought the brute out for Von Erich.
“He was like, ‘Man, I’m really gonna have to hit it hard.’ And I said, ‘No, you don’t, We’re going to make it look like you’re hitting it hard,’ and I kind of had to untrain him at certain things to retrain him the way I wanted him to do things, but he’s a he’s a like he’s a baller, man. He’s a pro. He’s a professional I mean in every sense of the word.”
You can catch both Guerrero and McCallany on screen now as “The Iron Claw” is available in theaters everywhere. You can watch SEScoop’s full video review of the film below.
