As the release of The Iron Claw rapidly approaches, fans of the first family of Texas wrestling were treated to not one, not two, but three appearances by The Von Erichs, Marshall, Ross, and their father Kevin – played in the movie by Zac Efron – on AEW television, with the trio debuting on Dynamite in a backstage segment and then wrestling a match on both Rampage and Ring of Honor Final Battle.
Walking down to the ring to the tune of their father's signature music, “Stranglehold” by Ted Nugent, The Von Erichs had a very good weekend in their televised return to Texas, going 2-0 for their efforts while being celebrated by the very friendly fans in attendance.
So what gives? Are The Von Erichs actually going to sign with AEW, landing their first wrestling contracts with a promotion since MLW in 2022? Or was this more of a one-off experience meant to get a pop from the crowd and help promote the A24 film? Well, according to Khan in the Ring of Honor Final Battle media scrum, it was more of the latter than the former, but who knows what the future could hold.
“I was really interested in the Von Erichs and using them. I think they had a representative months ago reach out to Sonjay, and Sonjay called me and said, ‘Would you have interest in the Von Erichs in Dallas?' I said, ‘Yes, absolutely.' I think the timing with Iron Claw would work out well for everybody, and it would make sense. We have a presence in that movie, MJF is an executive producer, MJF and Ryan Nemeth are in the film as actors. We also have a partnership with Warner Brothers Discovery, and they have a partnership with A24,” Tony Khan told reporters via Fightful.
“There was a lot of reasons why I thought they collaboration would make sense, but the biggest reason is, Dallas Metroplex is Von Erich country, this is their territory. When I saw them, the first thing I said to Kevin Von Erich was, ‘Thank you for letting us do the show in your territory.' It was really great working with Ross and Marshall these last few days, and they're going to be back with us tomorrow. It's been tremendous having them the whole week. I really liked getting them out there. I tried to set them up to succeed, and they're two for two. I wanted to give them opponents that were perfect opponents for them. I think they did great on Rampage and on ROH.”
Though the crowd may have been biased, as the Von Erichs are about as over in Texas as MJF is in Long Island, it was incredibly cool to see Marshall and Ross in an AEW ring, and based on the reaction they received from FTR after the show, who said they would love a match against the third-generation wrestlers, it's clear fans haven't seen the last of the duo, or their father Kevin, in professional wrestling.
Marshall Von Erich talks about The Iron Claw‘s premiere.
Stopping by Busted Open Radio to help promote both their appearance on AEW and The Iron Claw, Marshall Von Erich discussed what it was like to attend the movie's premiere alongside his family and how the movie, though far from a chronological re-telling of the family's story, did feature some incredible moments that touched them greatly.
“It was nerve-wracking going into the premiere as a family,” Marshall Von Erich said via Wrestling Inc. “We all went over there — my sisters had a harder time, and my mom — there were just so many question marks. And my dad was like, ‘If anything, they'll Google the real story, and I'll talk to them.' But we ended up watching it, and it's based on a true story, so there's a few chronological inconsistencies. But there was one part in the movie that my dad told us in confidence. I don't think he ever told anybody in an interview or anything — of a dream he had after my uncle Kerry passed that was so heavy that we almost had to leave the movie theater. My dad was like — he couldn't believe that it was in there.”
Is The Iron Claw a perfect movie or even a perfect retelling of the family's story? No, it notoriously leaves out Chris Von Erich and straddles the line between feel-good sports story and greek tragedy too much for fans of either category to truly celebrate it as a masterpiece, but ultimately, if The Von Erichs like it, then who are fans to judge, as that family has been through enough as it is.
Follow Us
Subscribe
