A buffed-up Zac Efron portrays professional wrestler Kevin Von Erich and his struggles with parental pressure and in-ring rivalries in the trailer of the sports biopic The Iron Claw.

Dropped by the makers on Wednesday, the two-minute-22-second trailer explores the testosterone-fuelled world of professional wrestling and the legendary Von Erich family tradition. It begins with Efron’s character talking about the family curse which was seen as a cause for several early deaths and family rivalries. It shows how Kevin’s father pitted him against his siblings David (Harris Dickinson), Kerry (Jeremy Allen White) and Mike (Stanley Simons) despite their mother’s objections.

The trailer follows Kevin’s life as he has to cope with parental pressure, his siblings’ deaths, in-ring injuries and wrestling rivalries while prioritising his own family. A beefed-up Efron suits the role of the pro-wrestler and brings vulnerability to the character. Wrestler Chavo Guerrero Jr. also appears as The Sheik in the movie.

Distributed by A24 and directed by Sean Durkin, The Iron Claw, which is named after a finishing move in the wrestling circuit that Kevin used to perform to outsmart his opponents, is set to revisit epic rivalries that the Von Erich family had with Michael Hayes, Ric Flair and Harley Race.

The Iron Claw will be releasing in theatres on December 22.