I love movies that take literal ideas and turn them into metaphors. That's why wrestling movies always get to me. They're usually all about grappling.
Now, sure, a lot of grappling happens on the mat, but we see a lot of characters grappling with parts of their lives as well. At the end of the day, these are all movies about characters dealing with issues and using their work in the ring or on the mat to balance those issues and take control.
With such a physical sport at its center, these stories allow us to enter a world we may not see very often and be a part of the grappling.
Here's a look at some of the best wrestling movies that explore themes of perseverance, family, and overcoming obstacles:
Reacher VS Paulie "Arm Wrestling" FULL Scene (2025)
Top Wrestling Movies
The Wrestler (2008)
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Writer: Robert Siegel
Cast: Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel WoodRead also: The Story of El Güero Canelo
This movie should have won many more Academy Awards than it did. All of Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, and Darren Aronofsky are at the top of their games, dealing with the legacy and toll of a hard life. I love the redemption arcs and amazingly sympathetic cinematography.
The Iron Claw (2023)
Director: Sean Durkin
Writer: Sean Durkin
Cast: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Lily JamesJust an emotionally crushing look at maybe the unluckiest family I've ever seen on film. The bonds of wrestling and showmanship here are only overshadowed by the heaviness of tragedy.
Foxcatcher (2014)
Director: Bennett Miller
Writers: E. Max Frye, Dan Futterman
Cast: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark RuffaloAn all-time creepy performance from Steve Carell in this movie. It's cool seeing how the rich use money as power and leverage, just like wrestlers in the ring.
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Foxcatcher is a 2014 American biographical sports thriller film, produced and directed by Bennett Miller. Written by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman, the film stars Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, and Mark Ruffalo.
Foxcatcher premiered on May 19, 2014, at the Cannes Film Festival, where Miller won Best Director. Upon its theatrical release on November 14, 2014, it received critical acclaim for the three lead actors' performances, Miller's direction, and the visual style and tone.
Foxcatcher was nominated for five awards at the 87th Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Carell, Best Supporting Actor for Ruffalo and Best Director for Miller.
Nacho Libre (2006)
Director: Jared Hess
Writers: Jared Hess, Jerusha Hess, Mike White
Cast: Jack Black, Héctor Jiménez, Ana de la RegueraWith all the heaviness, I thought we deserved to have a comedy on this list. I do laugh at this movie every time, and I like the idea of upholding traditions as well as the zaniness Jack Black brings to the screen.
Read also: A Look at the Anoa'i Family
Fighting with My Family (2019)
Director: Stephen Merchant
Writer: Stephen Merchant
Cast: Florence Pugh, Lena Headey, Nick Frost, Jack Lowden, Dwayne JohnsonThe WWE is such a huge business that it can feel impossible to penetrate. Enter a movie about an underdog who figured out how to be a part of a dream and how to rise up the ladder as a crowd favorite. It's a fun ride.
Beyond the Mat (1999)
Director: Barry W. Blaustein
This is a documentary, so there are no traditionally written roles, but it features: Mick Foley, Terry Funk, Jake "The Snake" Roberts
As I said, the world of professional wrestling is an interesting place full of egos action, and storytelling. This doc goes behind the scenes to talk to the stars and address some of the controversies. Even though it's a little older, it gives you a cool peak inside a hidden world.
Vision Quest (1985)
Director: Harold Becker
Writers: Darryl Ponicsan, Randy Quaid, Tim McCanlies
Cast: Matthew Modine, Linda Fiorentino, Michael SchoefflingI love a good high school sports movie. this one digs deep into wrestling and the idea of cutting weight and training. It's a drama also about love juxtaposed against dedication to a sport and the desire to be great.
Additional Wrestling Movies to Consider
- Legendary (2010): Starring John Cena, this film tells the story of a teenager who joins his school's wrestling team to reunite his family.
- Win Win (2011): A lawyer and high school wrestling coach finds his life changing when a talented wrestler joins his team.
- Takedowns and Falls (2010): A documentary following high school wrestlers in Pennsylvania as they pursue a state championship.
"Foxcatcher" Plot Details
In 1987, Olympic wrestling champion Mark Schultz speaks at an elementary school in place of his older brother Dave. Both won gold medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics, but Mark feels overshadowed by Dave.
Mark is contacted by philanthropist and wrestling enthusiast John E. du Pont, an heir to the du Pont family fortune, who arranges to fly Mark to his estate in Pennsylvania where du Pont has built a private wrestling training facility.
Du Pont invites Mark to join his wrestling team, Foxcatcher, to be paid to train for the World Championship. Mark accepts the offer, with du Pont urging him to enlist Dave as well.
Mark stays in a homey guest house and is greeted there by du Pont. Through training with his new teammates and du Pont's financial support, Mark excels with Foxcatcher, winning gold at the 1987 World Wrestling Championships.
Du Pont praises him, and they develop a friendship. Du Pont introduces Mark to cocaine, which he starts to use regularly. He confides in Mark, whom he now calls a true friend, telling him how his mother Jean du Pont paid a boy to act as his friend.
John organizes an over-50 masters wrestling tournament, which he wins after his opponent is paid to lose the final. Jean tells her son that wrestling is a "low sport" and that she does not like seeing him "being low".
One day Mark and his teammates take the morning off from training to watch mixed martial arts on television. Dave decides to move with his family to Pennsylvania so he can join Foxcatcher.
His self-esteem damaged by du Pont, Mark decides to work and train alone, pushing away both John and Dave. As Foxcatcher prepares to enter the preliminaries for the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, John's mother is escorted into his gym to watch him coach his team.
He awkwardly demonstrates basic maneuvers for her and the other wrestlers. At the 1988 Olympic Trials in Pensacola, Florida, Mark performs poorly, losing his first match against Rico Chiapparelli.
Enraged, Mark destroys his room and goes on an eating binge, before Dave manages to break into his room, shocked to discover Mark's condition. They work feverishly so Mark can make his weight class.
As Mark trains, John arrives and attempts to speak with him, but Dave turns him away. Mark competes well enough to win his match and make the Olympic team.
After returning to the estate, Mark tells Dave that he needs to leave Foxcatcher to get away from John, having accepted a coaching role at Brigham Young University, and unsuccessfully asks Dave to leave with him.
For a documentary funded by John about his exploits with Foxcatcher, Dave reluctantly praises him as coach and mentor. Mark loses his matches in Seoul on purpose, after which he leaves Foxcatcher.
Later, John is sitting alone in his mansion's trophy room watching the documentary about Foxcatcher, which ends with Mark complimenting him at a ceremony depicted earlier.
John calls his bodyguard and drives to Dave's home, where he finds him in the driveway working on his car radio. As Dave approaches John's car to greet him, John threatens him at gunpoint before shooting him three times and driving away.
Dave's wife Nancy rushes out to him, and he dies in her arms. Setting a trap for John at his home, the police ambush and arrest him.