Chavo Guerrero Jr. Reveals He Wrestled Zac Efron Multiple Times For "The Iron Claw"

Chavo Guerrero Jr. has been sharing some behind-the-scenes details of his work on the upcoming film The Iron Claw. The film, directed by Sean Durkin, tells the story of the Von Erich family, and Guerrero has been involved in training the cast and crew on the finer points of professional wrestling.

In a recent interview with Chris Van Vilet, Guerrero revealed that he wrestled the film's lead, Zac Efron, multiple times in order to capture the energy of a real wrestling match.

"Our first real wrestling scene in the movie is — Sean Durkin, asked me to be the wrestler in there," Guerrero said. "He's like, ‘I need you to really set the tone of this movie.’ I’m like, ‘Okay, let’s do it.’ So when that happened, we worked a 10-minute match or a 12-minute match over and over and over again. It wasn't just clips and clips, they wanted to get the feel of an actual wrestling match and take the parts they wanted from it. So, we did that, I mean 10-12 times."

Efron, who plays Kevin Von Erich, even hits a flying crossbody during one of his encounters with Chavo. Guerrero told Van Vilet that Efron nailed the move once he realized the proper way to execute it.

"I explained to him the first time, I go, ‘Look, the higher you jump, the easier it is going to be.’ It seems weird, but the higher you go, I can find you easier and you can find me.’ He was like, ‘Okay, I trust you,’ and he just went for it. Once he did it the one time, he did it 20 times. He could just do it, and do it, and do it, and do it."

Van Vilet also caught up with Efron, who spoke about his appreciation for pro-wrestling after completing work on The Iron Claw.

"I've always been a fan of wrestling, but I never really understood it until I started working on this movie," Efron said. "It's so much more than just a sport. It's a performance art, and it's incredibly athletic. I have a newfound respect for the people who do this for a living."

The Iron Claw is set to be released in theaters later this year.