The Iron Claw_ Inside Von Erich Family's 'Curse' and Wrestling Legacy
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00:00 The Bonner will forever be the greatest family in the history of wrestling.
00:07 It's a tough movie about a tough father, but life is tough, you know, and we have to get tough.
00:13 And so I hope this movie can inspire people.
00:16 The Iron Claw chronicles an infamous family from the world of professional wrestling.
00:21 I'm excited to see how the story is told, because this is a legendary story in sports entertainment.
00:27 Hey! Dives right into the Iron Claw!
00:32 Zac Efron plays Kevin Von Erich, one of the family's six brothers and only surviving member of the wrestling dynasty.
00:39 Can I talk to you about something, Mom? Dad's too tough on us. You gotta say something.
00:44 Baby, that's what your brother's for.
00:45 You feel that? You feel that? That's pressure!
00:48 E.T.'s taking a look at how the biopic portrays what's often called the Von Erich family curse.
00:54 I have thought, you know, what the heck is this? You know, some kind of a curse or something?
01:00 Ever since I was a child, people said my family was cursed. Mom tried to protect us with God.
01:09 Pop tried to protect us with wrestling. He said if we were the toughest, the strongest, nothing would ever hurt us.
01:16 If any family has suffered tragedy, it's been the Von Erich wrestling family.
01:21 Five out of six sons dead.
01:24 The fifth son, Kerry Von Erich, played by Jeremy Allen White, died by suicide in 1993,
01:30 over 30 years after tragedy first struck the Von Erichs,
01:34 when firstborn Jackie died from an accidental drowning at just seven years old.
01:39 Trying to get away from the Von Erich Iron Claw!
01:41 We were always brought up that Fritz Von Erich was our dad, and it got to where we were so close as a family,
01:48 and there was just us, it was us and them.
01:51 We're here to restore justice to the Wrestling Federation that our father built with his own two hands.
01:56 The hands that were passed down to us, the hands that will deliver the Iron Claw to you.
02:01 It's been their lives the whole time. Old dads out there in the parentage that wanted to be just like dad.
02:05 Well, the boys didn't want to do anything else. So when they decided to come in that business,
02:09 first of all, the fans knew they were incredible, knew they were great athletes.
02:12 Number two, their name was Von Erich. They were immediate successes.
02:16 As the siblings followed in dad's footsteps, their success was soon met with horrific events outside the ring.
02:23 Four more sons died in less than a decade.
02:26 Are we going to be uncle? Yes, sir. Oh, man, that makes me so happy.
02:32 Harris Dickinson portrays David Von Erich. He died from an intestinal infection in 1984,
02:38 followed by Mike, played by Stanley Simons, who three years later died from a drug overdose.
02:45 I've seen their ups. I've seen their downs and the tragedies they've been through.
02:49 You just I mean, you got you got to ask why you can't explain it.
02:53 I mean, son after son after son. And I keep hoping, well, that's the end of it.
02:59 They wanted Chris. It's Chris Von Erich.
03:03 One death not portrayed in the Iron Claw, Chris Von Erich. He died by suicide in 1991.
03:09 Writer and director Sean Durkin has said despite his best efforts, the film's story could only take on so many heartbreaks.
03:17 We wanted the movie to really celebrate the brothers and the love between them,
03:21 but also not afraid to shy away from what happened.
03:24 And so just trying to, you know, approach everything with the utmost respect and tenderness and yeah, try to be truthful.
03:31 Now, we all know Carrie's my favorite, then Kev, then David, then Mike.
03:35 But the rankings can always change.
03:37 Then in 1993, Carrie Von Erich also died by suicide.
03:41 Like his brother Chris, he shot himself on the family's Texas ranch.
03:46 Carrie, I want you to join your brothers in the ring.
03:48 Yes, sir. I'd love that.
03:50 This is the Mother's Day warrior, Carrie Von Erich!
03:57 So many problems have piled up that Carrie just couldn't see over the hill.
04:02 He just simply ended it all.
04:05 He's just a big old fun-loving pup, you know, my little brother.
04:10 Kevin and Fritz opened up to E.T. the day after losing Carrie,
04:14 who at the time was facing time behind bars following a drug charge,
04:18 which violated his probation after a separate drug arrest.
04:23 And Carrie came out and said, "Dad, I need the Jeep."
04:25 He said, "I just want to go back to a quiet place and just be alone for a while."
04:28 He said, "Dad, I really love you."
04:31 And I should have realized that that was different and something wasn't right here.
04:34 He told me that if he had to go to prison, he was going to kill himself.
04:39 And I said, "Carrie, come on. I thought he was just talking."
04:44 He had seen that he could get as far as he was going to get with me,
04:47 and so he said, "Okay, Kev, I won't do it. I won't commit suicide.
04:50 Whatever you say, buddy." And that's the way we left it right there.
04:54 That's our last conversation.
04:57 Now it's the Iron Claw in the midsection on Jerry "The King" Lawler.
05:02 It's just tragic. I mean, I'm absolutely-- I'm numb.
05:06 In the wake of Carrie's death, many learned Carrie's shocking secret for the first time.
05:12 I'm scared, man. I'm out of control.
05:16 [screams]
05:17 That was a terrible accident.
05:19 Following a motorcycle crash, Carrie's right foot was amputated.
05:23 He performed for years, secretly wearing a painful prosthesis.
05:28 Carrots and Carrie spins with a surprise discus punch.
05:32 I visited him in the hospital, and I actually knew--
05:36 I was one of the few that knew he had his foot off.
05:40 And he had a metal cast that he put over his-- like his shin.
05:45 And to wrestle with that thing, just the cast itself would dig into the leg.
05:52 And every time he went out, you know, it would either swell up or bleed.
05:57 The man went through a lot of pain every time he did any activity.
06:01 Carrie in the fluorescent green tights, and the girls give him a hoot, and here we go.
06:06 At some point, he planned to reveal the fact that he had lost that foot
06:10 to inspire other people in the same condition.
06:12 But unfortunately, Carrie died before he could.
06:15 As Carrie delivers another tremendous drive.
06:19 I think he didn't want pity.
06:21 I think he felt that the world had pitied the family and felt sorry for the family.
06:26 He didn't want that. He didn't want them to cheer out of pity.
06:29 He wanted them to cheer because of his athletic ability.
06:32 The Mother Day winner, Carrie Vaughn-Erin!
06:38 I'm thankful for the time I spent with Carrie, because I had a great brother.
06:42 I had great times with him and loved him, and we were so close.
06:48 So close. But this is the way it is now, so here we go.
06:52 We just go on, you know.
06:55 Flash forward to 2023, Kevin Vaughn-Eric was supported by loved ones
07:00 on the Iron Claws red carpet.
07:02 Being here now tonight to celebrate with your entire family by your side,
07:06 how special is that for you?
07:08 Well, I love my family so much, and it's always great to have them with me.
07:11 Family, there's nothing like it. I'm just as happy as I could be.
07:15 He's an incredibly sweet man who really believes in love and family.
07:21 He said today at the Q&A, he said, "Look, life is good."
07:25 He said, "Life is also hard, and you have to just persevere and persevere and persevere."
07:32 I want to be with my family. You know, be with my brothers.
07:37 What do you like to do with your brothers?
07:40 Adam, Carrie, and David Vaughn-Eric!
07:45 # Monday, Friday, I mean each night #
07:48 You know, this movie's about brothers at the core of it, and I'm a big brother myself.
07:52 I know that that connection in the movie is something that Kevin Vaughn-Eric
07:56 really appreciated about it, so it makes me proud.
07:58 And for the cast, their tight bond on screen was the real deal off the set.
08:04 It was pretty natural from the get-go.
08:06 They're all genuinely good human beings, nice, and we just hung out,
08:11 got dinner a couple times, just talked, and tried to, I don't know, be brothers.
08:17 I need to think about my family.
08:19 Your job is to wrestle. Live up to that deal, or we are through.
08:23 You know, we had a very talented cast, and the young guys that played my sons,
08:28 I really liked each and every one of them.
08:31 As award season's full speed ahead, the Iron Claws actors say their behind-the-scenes experience
08:37 was its own reward.
08:39 What would it mean to you to have this film and these roles be recognized?
08:43 Those things are always lovely because it brings attention to a film
08:48 that people have worked so hard on, and that always elevates things.
08:51 Considering the movie and just how proud we are of everybody,
08:55 from our crew out there to the wrestlers we worked with,
08:59 making this movie was such an incredible experience.
09:02 I can't believe that we all got it done, and we're so proud of it.
09:06 [music]
09:11 (whooshing)
09:13 [BLANK_AUDIO]