‘The Iron Claw’ Portrays Four Von Erich Brothers. There Were More

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The year 2023 offered movie audiences the chance to learn more about the major figures and forces that shaped our history, from the titular figure of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer to the titular figure of Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla to Bradley Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein in Maestro. You could even find out the backstories behind every day items like the Air Jordan, the Flamin’ Hot Cheeto, and even the game Tetris.

But one film offered a peek into a story of tragedy and triumph that is virtually unknown outside of the confines of the world of “carnies” and “kayfabe” known as professional wrestling.

The Iron Claw, starring Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, and Harris Dickinson, dramatizes the already traumatizing saga of the Von Erich family, one of the most celebrated wrestling dynasties in the history. Centering the eldest living son, Kevin (played by Efron), the movie shows how the domineering father, Fritz Von Erich (played by Holt McCallany), cajoled his four adult sons—Kevin, Kerry, David, and Mike—into joining the “family business” of professional wrestling and how the pressures of that world, and the patriarch who pushed them there, led to the tragic deaths of all but Kevin.

But as harrowing and heartbreaking as the events of The Iron Claw are, the movie actually leaves out some parts of the Von Erich saga. Most notably, while the script makes mention of an older son who died before the events of the movie, it leaves out an entire other Von Erich son, the youngest, whose own tragic story played out alongside that of his older brothers.

In an early, poignant scene in The Iron Claw, Kevin tells his future wife, Pam Adkisson (played by Lily James), about his older brother, Jack Adkisson Jr. Named for his father—Jack Adkisson Sr. took on the name Fritz Von Erich as part of his wrestling persona, a villainous Nazi—Jack Jr. died at only 6 years old, when an electric shock caused him to fall unconscious into a puddle and drown. This early death is attributed by Kevin to a “curse” on the Von Erich family name, one that he sees as the subsequent reason for his three brothers’ deaths.

In real life, the idea of a “Von Erich curse” has circulated around the pro wrestling scene for decades. It was even referenced in the title of ESPN’s 30 for 30 short Wrestling the Curse. By the time of that 2015 documentary, Kevin said he now knew there was no curse. “To tell the truth,” Kevin told The Dallas Morning News, “I may have believed it was when it was going on, but I never said it out loud.”

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While the movie acknowledges the tragic death of Jack Adkisson Jr, it actively omits another Von Erich brother: Chris. The youngest in the family, Chris also wrestled like his brothers and met a tragic and untimely end just as many of them did.

Chris Barton Adkisson was born on September 30, 1969. Unlike the next youngest sibling, Mike, who had no real desire to wrestle full-time, Chris desperately wanted to work in the ring. However, from a young age, Chris was afflicted with several ailments, including asthma and brittle bones. Chris did manage a brief in-ring career alongside brothers Kerry and Kevin in World Class Championship Wrestling, most notably facing off against Percival “Percy” Pringle III (later to become The Undertaker’s manager Paul Bearer in WWF/WWE) and Steve Austin (later to become the celebrated Stone Cold Steve Austin in WWF/WWE).

By age 21, Chris had grown frustrated at the stagnation of his career. He was also deeply affected by the suicide of his brother Mike in the spring of 1987. On September 12, 1991, just 18 days shy of his 22^nd birthday, Chris Von Erich took his own life, despite having assured Kevin earlier that day that he wouldn’t.

Chris’ story was excluded from the movie’s screenplay in an effort to economize time. During a Q&A after a screening of the film in November 2023, director Sean Durkin said that the surviving Von Erich family were understanding of the decision to exclude Chris, both for thematic and pacing purposes.

If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or self-harming behaviors, call or text 988 to get help from the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

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