It may have been years since Zac Efron donned the basketball jersey of Troy Bolton, but his time with High School Musical would help him prep for The Iron Claw.
The A24 biopic delves into the lives, careers, and many tragedies of the Von Erich family. Efron plays Kevin Von Erich alongside Jeremy Allen White (Kerry) and Harris Dickinson (David). Several wrestlers appear in the film including MJF (as Lance Von Erich), Chavo Guerrero Jr. (Ed ‘The Sheik’ Farhat), and Ryan Nemeth (Gino Hernandez).
Zac Efron on Dancing & Wrestling
Speaking to W Magazine, Efron spoke about how his background in dance, such as those seen in High School Musical, helped prepare him for the world of professional wrestling.
“Dancing and wrestling are surprisingly similar. There’s a choreographed element to both, and the more you do it, the better you get. Also, just the sense of moving with a partner: Sometimes you lead, and sometimes you’re holding on to the other guy. The learning curve for wrestling is you just go for it. For stuff like climbing up on the ropes and jumping off, you’ve just got to nut up and go for it. There’s no real practicing.”
Efron admitted to not being a wrestling fan growing up but chalked this up to him and his brother being banned from watching the sport. In the interview, Efron added that people often sing songs from High School Musical to mess with him, and The Iron Claw proved to be no exception.
“We had a scene where we show up to a party where Stanley, I think, is singing a song. He performed it live, and then they just continued to move on to another song, and it was something from High School Musical. I had to stay in character while that was going on, and everybody else was just losing it.”
Could Zac Efron one day step into the ring for real at an event for AEW? Don’t count it out! Click here to find out more.
