Buzz
Debuting in 1977, the bodybuilding docudrama Pumping Iron remains as compelling today as it was over four decades ago. Despite bodybuilding being a niche sport, the film continues to humanize its athletes, shedding light on their quest for physical excellence. These individuals are both the artists and the medium, shaping masterpieces from their own imposing physiques.
Although the film is widely recognized for launching Arnold Schwarzenegger into the cinematic spotlight, Pumping Iron offers much more. Discover 12 intriguing details about the movie’s creation, debates over its authenticity, and the surprising political figure who played a role in its promotion.
1. THE FILM INITIALLY FEATURED A LESS IMPOSING CO-STAR.
When photographer George Butler was assigned by both Life magazine and The Village Voice to document the growing bodybuilding movement in the early 1970s, he was captivated by its array of charismatic personalities. Convinced that Arnold Schwarzenegger, one of the sport’s standout figures, could anchor a feature film, Butler teamed up with Robert Fiore to begin shooting in 1975. However, Butler’s focus on the colossal competitors of the Mr. Olympia stage posed a challenge. To provide a more approachable perspective, he recruited the slender actor Bud Cort (Harold and Maude), filming him as he trained and admired the muscular physiques surrounding him. Ultimately, this footage was excluded from the final cut.
2. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER WAS INITIALLY DOUBTED AS A LEAD.
While seeking funding, Butler captured a 10-minute test clip of Schwarzenegger guest posing in Holyoke, Massachusetts. When he presented the footage to potential backers in New York, their reaction was far from enthusiastic—many were more alarmed than impressed by the Austrian bodybuilder’s imposing presence. Playwright Romulus Linney even quipped, “If you make a movie about this Arnold person, we will laugh you off 42nd Street.” Undeterred, Butler secured financing by approaching over 3000 individual investors.
3. SCHWARZENEGGER’S NAME NEARLY SANK THE PROJECT BEFORE IT BEGAN.
The issue wasn’t pronunciation. Butler recalled a moment during production when funds were so scarce that he approached a film lab for credit. Upon mentioning the project was about bodybuilding, the employee grew cold and inquired if Schwarzenegger was involved. When Butler confirmed he was the star, the lab refused service, citing unpaid bills from Schwarzenegger’s debut film, 1970’s Hercules in New York. The lab claimed, “They owe me thirty grand.”
4. IT SPARKED THE CREATION OF ANOTHER 1970S CINEMATIC GEM.
To provide a counterpoint, Butler chose to highlight Lou Ferrigno, Schwarzenegger’s competitor for the 1975 Mr. Olympia crown. A reserved Brooklynite, Ferrigno was portrayed as struggling under the pressure of his overbearing father. Screenwriter Nik Cohn observed the Ferrignos’ heated dinner table debates and drew inspiration for his own work, "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night," which became the 1977 hit Saturday Night Fever, launching John Travolta to stardom.
5. LOU FERRIGNO FORETOLD HIS OWN DESTINY.
While much of the raw footage was discarded, one moment stood out to Butler. During a conversation about his aspirations, Ferrigno confided that his ultimate goal was to become the Hulk. Remarkably, just two years later, he landed the lead role in CBS’s The Incredible Hulk, fulfilling his dream.
6. CERTAIN SCENES WERE DELIBERATELY STAGED.
Schwarzenegger revealed that several scenes in Pumping Iron were staged to such an extent that he struggled to classify it as a pure documentary. “It’s more of a docudrama,” he admitted. To address investor worries about monotonous training sequences, he amplified his cocky persona for the cameras. “We aimed to portray me as emotionless and ruthless,” he stated. One infamous moment showed Schwarzenegger skipping his father’s funeral to avoid disrupting his training. In truth, he borrowed the anecdote from another bodybuilder to generate buzz. “It was fabricated. My father was alive during every competition.”
7. FERRIGNO WAS INITIALLY CAST AS THE FILM’S ANTAGONIST.
Schwarzenegger explained that filmmakers initially envisioned Ferrigno as the movie’s villain—a towering figure poised to dethrone him. However, Ferrigno’s vulnerability and inability to pose a real threat shifted the narrative, allowing Schwarzenegger to embrace his role as the provocateur. “We turned him into the underdog and cast me as the cunning champion who outsmarts rivals year after year,” Schwarzenegger remarked.
8. ARNOLD ADMITTED TO USING STEROIDS.
Years later, Schwarzenegger addressed the long-standing question about his use of performance-enhancing drugs during his bodybuilding career and in Pumping Iron. “Yes, I used them,” he confirmed. “It was the early days of steroids, and they weren’t illegal. We were open about it and viewed it as part of the sport.”
9. JACKIE KENNEDY PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN THE FILM’S SUCCESS.
Just a week before Pumping Iron debuted in January 1977, the film’s publicist organized a high-profile press luncheon in New York, attended by luminaries like Andy Warhol and George Plimpton. The most notable attendee, however, was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who showed up as a favor to a mutual friend of Schwarzenegger’s. Her appearance at a bodybuilding movie event was so unexpected that it generated significant media buzz. “She gave Pumping Iron a massive publicity lift,” Schwarzenegger later noted. Onassis even brought her son, John F. Kennedy Jr., to the premiere.
10. BODYBUILDERS INITIALLY DESPISED THE FILM.
Butler anticipated a positive reaction from the bodybuilders featured in the film, so he invited them to a test screening. However, when the lights came on, the room was silent. “You really messed this up, George!” one bodybuilder yelled. “This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen!” Despite their harsh critique, critics and general audiences loved the film. Pumping Iron sparked a surge in bodybuilding’s popularity and helped ignite the 1980s fitness movement.
11. THE FOLLOW-UP FILM WAS A FLOP.
Almost a decade after starting the original project, Butler embarked on a sequel. Pumping Iron II: The Women, released in 1985, spotlighted the rising female bodybuilding movement. While critics and publications praised it, the absence of Arnold Schwarzenegger left audiences unenthusiastic, and the film has since faded into obscurity.
12. A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE DOCUMENTARY WAS MADE.
To mark the 25th anniversary of Pumping Iron in 2002, a documentary called Raw Iron was produced. Serving as a retrospective, it blended unused footage—such as the discarded Bud Cort material—with modern interviews featuring key bodybuilders and Butler. Schwarzenegger revealed an ironic twist: he had initially been reluctant to participate in the original film because he was eager to leave bodybuilding behind and focus entirely on acting.
