‘The Iron Claw’ Star Defends His Controversial Character: ‘Fritz Von Erich Is Not a Villain’ (Exclusive)

Though The Iron Claw isn't exactly a pro wrestling movie so much as a drama about pro wrestlers, it definitely has, in the parlance of that sport, a heel.

Mindhunter star Holt McCallany plays the head of the Von Erich family, a group of strongmen (and one long-suffering wife) who are enveloped by codes of masculinity. The film, which stars Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Stanley Simons and Maura Tierney, is a tragedy several times over, and most who watch it will conclude that the source of much of the family's misery is McCallany's Fritz, cinema's newest hardcore strict father.

But McCallany clearly doesn't see it that way. Before I could even finish my first question, he was ready to jump off the top rope and clarify how he sees the character. (Reading it is one thing, but when his rich baritone is booming over Zoom, it's even more intense.)

In addition to sharing "Fritz's Version" of The Iron Claw, we talked a little about the preparation taken by his co-stars and an upcoming project with Tom Cruise. This conversation has been edited for clarity.

Actors often say that they never think of their character as the villain—

Let me start by saying Fritz Von Erich is not a villain. I genuinely feel that way. After doing my research, I came to admire Fritz Von Erich. I think he’s an icon; I think he’s a legend; I think he’s been unfairly blamed. To lay the suicides and tragedies on him [is unfair].

He has been unfairly characterized as a monster by so many so-called wrestling experts. Even his son Kevin, who I was with the other night, has said, "Too much has been made of that." The most gratifying moment for me was hearing Kevin say, in an interview, "I can’t believe they found an actor to play Fritz."

That one comment meant more to me than any critic’s; that’s his son talking.

Well ... the movie does have the cathartic moment when Kevin is basically strangling Fritz, and the audience is cheering him on.

He’s a complicated guy who didn’t always make the best decisions, but ultimately he was a family man who only loved one woman and who took tremendous pride in his sons and their success. Wanting to make his sons the biggest stars in Texas wrestling is an honorable aspiration. 

If, along the way, certain tragedies led him to make bad decisions, it was because he was in a difficult place emotionally and with the business. Nobody’s perfect. 

Not to overly personalize this, but I had an absent father. I’d rather have a father like Fritz Von Erich. For all his faults, he wants his sons to be successful, and he’s going to do everything in his power to help them accomplish that. It all came from a place of love. I never saw one inkling of jealousy in how he acted; he had tremendous pride in his sons. 

I attended a screening of The Iron Claw in New York City and Jeremy Allen White and Zac Efron talked about lifting weights in between takes. 

It’s not uncommon for an actor to give himself a little bit of a pump, especially for a scene where he’s not wearing a shirt. 

I dropped 35 pounds to play Fritz because the film spans time. In the 1950s and '60s, he was in tremendous physical condition, and then we had scenes that we shot that did not make it into the final cut where he is dying of cancer and wasting away. For the 1970s and '80s, I had a prosthetic belly for the extra weight he was carrying. 

Zac Efron specifically seemed incredibly dedicated to this performance. 

Zac showed up in great shape. I didn’t see his transformation; he showed up looking like a million bucks. That doesn’t happen overnight. You have to be dedicated, and I think it was important to Zac to look like a professional wrestler.

He and I both — and I’ll speak for him because I am sure he feels the same way — know there is an additional responsibility when you are playing a real person. Kevin Von Erich was at our premiere. 

You’ve got some exciting stuff coming up, like Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part Two. You talk about dedication, tell me a little bit about Tom Cruise.

This is my second project with him after Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. Success is very important to Tom; he’s the executive producer, co-director, co-screenwriter, co-stunt coordinator; he’s a very hands-on guy and you can’t argue with the results. He’s one of the most successful stars of all time. But even if you are Tom Brady, you still need someone to throw to — it’s a team sport, and he wants [the best] people around him.  

The IMDb has you listed in the film as Secretary of State Bernstein.  Holt, you normally play characters named Brannigan or Callahan, I don’t see you as a Bernstein.

We changed that. I insisted [director] Chris McQuarrie change that. He gave me an Irish name. I didn’t want to confuse people.

However, there is a guy named Leonard Bernstein, and let me give a shout-out to my good friend Bradley Cooper. I saw Maestro and had an opportunity to chat with him after. It’s a masterful performance and fascinating film, and I hope that he will be nominated for an Academy Award. 

The Iron Claw is in theaters Dec. 22.