The Iron Clawofficially opened with a wide release during the Christmas box office window, allowing moviegoers to see what critics had said days before the movie opened to the masses:The Iron Clawis likely Zac Efron’s best movieto date. In addition to Efron, the film has also been praised as one of the best of the year. As more people see it, a groundswell of support has begun to emerge regarding Efron being more than worthy of being one of the five performers nominated for the Best Actor Oscar at the Academy Awards.
Directed and written by Sean Durkin,The Iron Clawis a biographical sports drama based on the real life of professional wrestler Kevin Von Erich (Efron) and the Von Erich family. The family dominated the profession in the 1980s, but with great success came profound tragedy as the Von Erich’s had to battle it out in and out of the ring. The personal tragedies became known as the “Von Erich curse,” primarily because of the chain of events that saw many of the family members die due to tragic circumstances. In addition to Efron, the film stars Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Holt McCallany, Maura Tierney, and Lily James.
A24’s Release Strategy for The Iron Claw Hampered Some of Its Oscar Chances
The Iron Claw
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The film was released by A24, a studio known for high-quality content and intelligent release strategies. Still, they made a puzzling move with this particular film, considering its potential as an awards contender.
The studio skipped the festival circuit withThe Iron Claw, reportedly because it wasn’t completed in time during post-production to compete, and released the film late on the calendar in December. This prevented some critics from voting for the film, which hurt its potential Oscar chances. This is why the film was noticeably absent in major categories from other ceremonies and critics' awards, such as theGolden Globe 2024 nominationsand the Critics' Choice Awards.
The Iron Claw Star Zac Efron Discusses His Remarkable Physical Transformation for the Role
Zac Efron discusses his remarkable physical transformation for the upcoming biopic The Iron Claw role.
The Iron Clawcarries an 89 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and an even more impressive 93 percent audience score on the site. In addition to high notices on the review aggregator, the film also received an “A” CinemaScore from opening day moviegoers.
This kind of release is prime for Oscar buzz, especially when it features a central performance from someone like Efron, an actor who came to fame as a teen heartthrob and one of the leadcast members in theHigh School Musicalfranchise, who is now positioning himself as a performer to watch. This is one of the many reasons the internet is throwing its support behind Efron to potentially gain late notice for his performance. It’s being deemed worthy of recognition, even if the late release and lack of true Oscar campaigning may have hurt his chances.
Efron’s performance and the film itself are still eligible for Oscar consideration, but the late release and lack of true push from A24 did stifle its chances leading up to nominations. The movie missed key screenings at the precursors for the ceremony and critic groups, which already had announced most of its contenders ahead ofThe Iron Claw’s release, diminishing some of its visibility.
Some of these groups admit they would’ve put their weight behind the film, especially Efron, had the movie been screened earlier. However, despite being a late contender, that doesn’t mean the actor should be counted out, despite a competitive field for Best Actor.
The Best Actor Race Is Tight, But Zac Efron Still Has a Shot to Sneak in
The competition is stiff in the Best Actor category, with most suggesting that certain actors will definitely make the five (Cillian Murphy inOppenheimer,Bradley Cooper with one of his greatest movie performancesinMaestro, and Paul Giamatti inThe Holdovers). While the other two spots are up in the air with other contenders, they include Leonardo DiCaprio forKillers of the Flower Moon, Jeffrey Wright forAmerican Fiction, Andrew Scott forAll of Us Strangers, Barry Keoghan forSaltburn, and Colman Domingo forRustin. Looking at that group alone, it would appear that Efron would have to wrestle his way through the competition, but he does have a few things in his favor that could allow him to sneak in at the last minute.
Box office does influence the Oscar race, and it can allow some of the voting body to see films that have less exposure.The Iron Clawplayed exceptionally well over the holidays and had a solid word of mouth despite being on a limited number of screens compared to the other big releases that came out during the break.
To date, the film has grossed $18.2 million on a reported $15 million budget, and word of mouth should allow it to maintain momentum. This would put it ahead of films likeRustin,All of Us Strangers, andAmerican Fiction, which did have the benefit of earlier screenings with critics but much more limited box office exposure.
Efron wouldn’t be the first actor to break into the Oscar race late in the game. Last year, Paul Mescal, while receiving some notices from critics' associations for his riveting performance inAftersun, wasn’t guaranteed a spot in the Best Actor race due to the film’s limited reach. The movie grossed a mere $8.3 million by the end of its run, but Mescal managed to earn a Best Actor Academy Award nomination. While he didn’t win, the nomination was viewed as a win by some, considering the movie was the little engine that could during awards season. This is a similar trajectory that Efron could very well follow.
An Academy Award nomination wouldn’t change the fact that Efron puts in tremendous work inThe Iron Claw. It truly is a harrowing performance that is the epitome of dedication, as the actor showcases not only the physical prowess of Kevin Von Erich but also the immense pain of a man who endured so much tragedy that it almost feels made up for a Hollywood movie.
Efron has been working at proving himself as a true actor for many years, and this is certainly his moment. Hopefully, a questionable release strategy won’t hamper his chances of receiving acknowledgment from his peers. He deserves a slot in that top five with one of thebest performances in 2023.The Iron Clawis playing in theaters now.
