Jeremy Allen White explains why ‘The Iron Claw’ was a “really scary” experience
Jeremy Allen White, who portrays Kerry Von Erich in The Iron Claw, has explained why shooting the upcoming A24 movie was “really scary”.
The forthcoming film, set for release on February 9th, 2024, dramatises the story of the legendary wrestling dynasty, the Von Erichs. White stars in the film alongside Zac Efron, Harris Dickinson, Lily James and Maura Tierney.
The tale of the Von Erichs is coated in tragedy. While the family dominated the professional wrestling scene throughout the 1980s, they also had to deal with heartbreaking disasters. Among those incidents is the death of Kerry, who died by suicide in 1993.
“I had never played a real person before,” White said of the experience to GQ of playing Kerry in the biopic. “And it’s so frightening, because someone’s life is being investigated.”
While he was on set on The Iron Claw, White met Kerry’s two daughters, Hollie and Lacey. Reflecting on the encounter, the actor admitted: “That was really scary for me.”
He also explained that he’s typically drawn to roles centred around loneliness, stating, “I feel very close to it all the time.” However, he’s now trying to move away from being led by emotion, adding: “It just feels bad. I’m not a method actor, but what I do try to do is stay close to a feeling that I think is appropriate.”
Meanwhile, in the same interview, White revealed he missed out on the chance to appear in a “Marvel-y” movie after an unsuccessful meeting where he “played it all wrong”.
According to the star of The Bear, he blew the opportunity by saying, “ ’Tell me about why should I do your movie’”. White’s forthright approach was met with hostility, “They were like, ‘Fuck you’. And I was like, ‘Right on.’”
Watch the trailer for The Iron Claw below.
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