Pro-Wrestling is a very interesting sport. It’s the most physical medium in which performers can tell stories, and yet, its performers never get the credit they deserve. Great wrestling can make the audience feel much like any movie or TV show can, yet often it’s labeled a fake sport. On the upside, it seems to have seen a rise in popularity through shows like GLOW and Heels. As of recent news, there will be a new movie from A24 with Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White playing the Von Erich brothers of the legendary wrestling family.
There have been plenty of movies over the years about pro wrestling, some great and some not so great. Where many of the films on this list succeed is in capturing the heart of the sport and showing the physical toll it takes to step in between the ropes as a career. It’s not always as fun as it looks, but to those who sacrifice their health and years of their lives, it’s worth the risks. Other movies on this list aren’t quite as serious, but are a lot of fun to watch. Here is a ranking of the best movies about professional wrestling.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
10 Queens of the Ring
WWE Studios
This WWE-produced French film follows a mom fresh out of prison looking to reconnect with her son. Unfortunately, by this point in their relationship, he prefers pro wrestling over his mom. Not willing to give up, the mom becomes a pro wrestler with some co-workers from her cashier job. With the help of an old-school wrestling trainer, the three learn the ropes to being in the ring and putting this mom on the right path back to her son’s heart. Queens of the Ring is a decent comedy, but may not be for everyone. Teens may like it, but only if they can let themselves get into the spirit of the movie. There’s plenty to love for wrestling fans, though, even a few cameos from some of WWE’s best performers at the time, like CM Punk, The Miz, and even The Vaudevillains of all people.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
9 No Holds Barred
Shane Distribution Company
There’s no way to make a list of the best pro-wrestling movies without this movie. No Hold Barred was made at the height of Hulkamania and saw Hulk Hogan playing the character Rip Thomas, the money-making wrestler for the WWF. When the head of the rival network fails to persuade Rip into joining his promotion, he decides to get revenge instead by creating a new extreme wrestling promotion centered around his monster of a star Zeus, played by Tiny Lister. Not willing to give in to his intimidation, Rip agrees to face the mastodon in “A Battle of the Tough Guys,” a no holds barred match for network supremacy. This isn’t the best wrestling film out there, but it is a lot of fun to watch and fully encapsulates everything great about wrestling in this era. And just like Queens of the Ring, it’s chock-full of wrestling stars of the time, such as “Mean” Gene Okerlund, Stan Hanson, and Ax from the tag team Demolition.
8 The Main Event
Speaking of stars from a certain era, The Main Event was a Netflix exclusive film made in partnership between the popular streamer and WWE and features some of the most prominent stars in wrestling today. This story revolves around Leo, a bullied 11-year-old kid who loves WWE and gets his chance to shine when the company roles into his town. With the help of a mask that grants the youth superpowers, Leo enters the company’s tournament not just for a shot at living his dream, but also to save his home from repossession. In case it wasn’t obvious from the picture, this movie is geared exclusively towards kids. It didn’t win any awards, but children still have fun watching and living out their wildest fantasies through the eyes of someone their age in a WWE ring.
7 Ready to Rumble
Bel Air Entertainment, Outlaw Productions, Tollin/Robbins Productions
While this film may have been made during WCW’s lowest point and arguably indirectly contributed to the promotion’s downfall, this doesn’t change the fact that Ready to Rumble was a fun wrestling film and is still widely memorable today. The film follows two sanitation workers (David Arquette and Scott Caan) with a deep love of wrestling who set out to revitalize the career of their hero Jimmy King (Oliver Platt). Ready to Rumble serves as a time capsule for this legendary program on television and features plenty of familiar acting faces, and, of course, wrestling legends such as DDP, Goldberg, Sting, and more. Oddly enough, it also led to Arquette becoming WCW World Heavyweight Champion and wrestling in a triple cage match, but most wrestling fans, Arquette included, would prefer to forget that strange period in wrestling history.
6 Paradise Alley
Force Ten Productions Inc.
The oldest film on this list, Paradise Alley sees Sylvester Stallone as Cosmo, one of three brothers living in the slums. In an attempt to change their fortunes, Cosmo and his war veteran brother Lenny convince their larger and beefier brother Victor to take up professional wrestling. Their scheme is successful at first, but Cosmo soon starts to worry about Victor’s welfare in the brutal sport, while Lenny tries to push Victor further through his own greed. If that wasn’t bad enough, a local gangster gets in on the action and pits Victor up against vicious local Legend Frankie the Thumper (played by wrestler Terry Funk). This film serves as the first in Stallone’s long career where he’s credited as writer and director. It’s an interesting throwback to the actor’s earlier work, but also a neat film about old-school wrestling in the 1940s.
5 Nacho Libre
Nickelodeon Movies/Paramount Pictures
In what is undoubtedly a cult classic, Nacho Libre follows Jack Black’s character Ignacio, who is loosely based on a real-life monk/luchador. Determined to keep the children of his monastery fed and to impress the new nun, Ignacio takes up Luchador wrestling on the side for extra money. With the help of a mugger, the two form a tag team and soon start to gain acceptance, not only from the beautiful nun, but from the Lucha Libre community itself. For whatever reason, Wrestling Inc. only has this film at number eight on their list of best wrestling movies. Made by the same people who made Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre isn’t for everyone. The humor can be cringe-worthy, but anyone who knows what they are getting into has no issue enjoying this picture for what it is, a kid-friendly self-realized movie that’s a fun time from beginning to end.
4 Rumble
Paramount+
Rumble sees a kid named Winnie try to save her town by ensuring the local stadium, which happens to house a monster wrestling league, keeps from closing after its top draw departs the promotion. To keep fans coming, Winnie enlists the help of Steve/Rayburn Jr. a second-generation grappler monster. Competition is big. Though Rayburn’s confidence is small, with Winnie’s help, they may just pull it off. With current top WWE stars Becky Lynch and Roman Reigns and acting talent from Will Arnett, Steven A. Smith, and Terry Crews, Rumble is a good time for the whole family. There are plenty of great animated high jinks for kids to love, and the kaiju action is just enough to keep parent’s attention as well.
3 Fighting With My Family
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Seven Bucks Productions, WWE Studios
Ranking at number three on this list is What Nerd’s number six entry on their list of best wrestling movies. Fighting With My Family is a biopic of the real-life British wrestler Saraya Jade Bevis (FKA Paige) as she rises from the independent wrestling scene to the top of WWE’s women’s division. The film sees acting heavyweight Florence Pugh playing Paige, who competes with her brother to win a contract with WWE. Unfortunately, she is the only one who succeeds at doing so and must navigate NXT’s more looks-based competition alone. Although pressured to change in favor of a sexier model look, Paige will have to learn that the only way to succeed is by being herself. Fighting With My Family is a hard-hitting yet heartwarming tale about staying true to oneself and bolsters an excellent cast featuring Vince Vaughn, Dwayne Johnson, Lena Headey, and Nick Frost, and is directed by Stephen Merchant. It was also co-produced by Johnson’s Seven-Bucks Productions, so if he believed in the project, viewers can as well.
2 The Peanut Butter Falcon
Armory Films
Unlike the other films on this list, The Peanut Butter Falcon isn’t so much about a professional wrestler as it is about an aspiring wrestler’s journey to reach his dream. Zack Gottsagen plays said wannabe wrestler, also named Zac, a down syndrome patient who escapes the care facility he was living in to pursue his dream. Along the way, he meets Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a man also on the run who becomes the only person to believe in Zac. Together, they head for North Carolina’s Salt Water Rednecks wrestling school, where Zac can learn to be just like his hero, The Salt Water Redneck. This is a heartwarming tale that also features Dakota Johnson as Zac’s nurse. It’s a stylish film about hope and friendship that’s sure to lift anyone’s spirits and is a perfect film that shows that the love of wrestling runs deep within its fans.
1 The Wrestler
Wild Bunch, Protozoa Pictures
The number one spot on the list goes to the film all wrestling fans should watch. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler follows an aging wrestler (Mickey Rourke) who is forced to reevaluate what is important in his life when a brutal match leaves him with a heart attack. After being advised to quit wrestling, he attempts to repair his relationship with his daughter and convince his love interest to settle down. Unfortunately, the real world can be just as unforgiving as wrestling. What makes this movie special is it’s a bleak but honest look at wrestlers after they’ve hung up their boots. Rourke gives the best performance of his career and is joined by Evan Rachel Wood and Marisa Tomei. If this Oscar-nominated film isn’t enough to tug at the heartstrings, then it should at least give wrestling fans and naysayers bigger respect for the sport many deem as fake.
