Wrestling fans are looking forward to seeing The Iron Claw on December 22, which is a biographical film based on the lives of The Von Erich family. Early reviews of the film have praised it, and it currently has a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes with 52 reviews. One of the notable things that critics have praised about the movie has been Zac Efron’s performance as Kevin Von Erich.
In the film’s early stages, it became evident how much Efron took it seriously. He shocked fans when photos were taken of him on the set in incredible shape to play his role. Efron has looked in shape for past roles, but he noticeably put on more muscle than he ever had for a movie. This sparked more intrigue in the film, as it showed how dedicated Efron and other actors like Jeremy Allen White were to play members of the Von Erich family.
In an interview with The Variety, Efron shared how he got physically prepared for the role and is a perfectionist. This made him obsessed with getting in shape for the movie.
The Variety’s Daniel D’Addario transcribed the following quotes.
“That necessity to be perfect — it became an obsession,” said Efron. He added, “It was a singular focus for months. And your life goes out the window during prep.”
It’s noted that Efron worked out for portions of a day and gained 15 pounds of muscle in the early stages of preparing for his role.
More on Zac Efron Getting In Shape For Kevin Von Erich
While fans were surprised by Efron’s transformation for the film, co-stars also were impressed with his commitment. White joked during his appearance on The Jimmy Kimmel Show on November 28 that he didn’t want to stand near Efron to avoid comparison on their conditioning for The Iron Claw.
When speaking on his training style, Efron shared that after he gained 15 pounds of muscle, he focused on bodybuilding.
“…I was able to incorporate old-school body-building and Olympic lifting and really achieved that specific look of pro wrestlers, which was really hard,” said Efron.
The work seemed to have paid off as his incredible condition added to his acting for most critics. His performance in the film has also created chatter from people who saw the film that he could be up for an Oscar next year.
SEScoops’ Dominic DeAngelo will have a review of the film coming soon!
