Scene from American Wrestler: The Wizard

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American Wrestler: The Wizard (2017)

Name: American Wrestler: The Wizard
Genre: Drama
Released: 2017-05-16
Duration: 117 min
Rating: 7.2
Cast: George Kosturos, Jon Voight, William Fichtner, Lia Marie Johnson, Kevin G. Schmidt

American Wrestler: The Wizard (2017), directed by Alex Ranarivelo, starring George Kosturos and Jon Voight.

05/16/2017 BR Drama 1h 57m

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Quiz about this movie

He escaped one war, only to face another.

Synopsis

In 1980, a teenage boy escapes the unrest in Iran only to face more hostility in America, due to the hostage crisis. Determined to fit in, he joins the school's floundering wrestling team.

Reuben SteinbergCinematography
Alex RanariveloDirector
Brett HedlundEditing
Ali AfsharProducer, Story

About the film

American Wrestler: The Wizard is a 2016 American sports biographical film directed by Alex Ranarivelo. The film centers around the world of competitive high school wrestling and stars George Kosturos as Ali Jahani, a 17–year old who escapes Iran in the 1980s after the Iran hostage crisis and must adjust to life in a small California town only to face more hostility due to the hostage crisis. William Fichtner, Jon Voight, Ali Afshar, Gabriel Basso, Kevin G. Schmidt and Lia Marie Johnson also star in supporting roles.

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Cast

George Kosturos as Ali Jahani

William Fichtner as Coach Plyler

Ali Afshar as Hafez Tabad

Lia Marie Johnson as Kristi Larsen

Gabriel Basso as Jimmy Petersen

Sasha Feldman as Dan 'Toad' Webster

Chase Mowen as Mike Thornhill

Kevin G. Schmidt as Roman Knox

Nicholas Guilak as Pasha

Shannon Collis as Wendy

Production

Development

The idea for American Wrestler: The Wizard is heavily inspired by producer Ali Afshar who took up wrestling in his high school after fleeing from his home country of Iran due to the political outrage in the 1970s. Speaking on his take of biographical films, Ali stated that he wanted to show that any tough situation can have a positive impact no matter what the outcome. He wanted to emphasise the demeanour of how one's loss can actually be turned into a win.

Majority of the filming took place in Petaluma, California, with scenes being shot at Casa Grande High School (which was renamed to East Petaluma High School for the film), as well as Tomales high school for hallway scenes, cafeteria scenes, as well as the gymnasium being used for some wrestling scenes. Some scenes were also shot in Santa Rosa mainly in the Sonoma County area.

Music

Jamie Christopherson who previously worked on Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and The Crow: Wicked Prayer composed the film's score. Christopherson used a blend of traditional orchestra and synths and worked with Iranian musicians. He also co-composed the film's theme song titled "Rise" with Armenian-Iranian singer, Andy featuring American singer Shani Rigsbee.

Release

The film premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival on April 23, 2016 and had a limited theatrical run starting May 3, 2017.

Accolades

Sequel

The sequel titled American Wrestler: The Fighter was announced by producers Forrest Lucas and Ali Afshar. Principal photography began in North Carolina in June 2017. George Kosturos returns to star with Tommy Flanagan, Bryan Craig, Sean Patrick Flanery and Parviz Sayyad joining as new cast members.

References

External links

American Wrestler: The Wizard at IMDb

American Wrestler: The Wizard at Metacritic

American Wrestler: The Wizard at Rotten Tomatoes

Text from American Wrestler: The Wizard on Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Wrestler:_The_Wizard

Trivia

It premiered on May 16, 2017, a Tuesday.
It runs 1h57 — a typical feature length.
As of September 20, 2026, it is available in Brazil by subscription on Looke, Paramount Plus, Paramount+ Amazon Channel.
This film's quiz has 13 questions — enough to play more than once without repeats.

Production

StudiosESX Productions, ESX Entertainment
CountriesUnited States
LanguagesEnglish
StatusReleased

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Crew

Reuben Steinberg Cinematography
Alex Ranarivelo Director
Brett Hedlund Editing
Ali Afshar Producer
Hadeel Reda Producer
Jamie Christopherson Original music
Ali Afshar Story
Brian Rudnick Writer
Brian Rudnick Story

Questions about this film

What is American Wrestler: The Wizard about?

American Wrestler: The Wizard: In 1980, a teenage boy escapes the unrest in Iran only to face more hostility in America, due to the hostage crisis. Determined to fit in, he joins the school's floundering wrestling team.

Who directed American Wrestler: The Wizard?

American Wrestler: The Wizard was directed by Alex Ranarivelo in 2017.

Who stars in American Wrestler: The Wizard?

The cast of American Wrestler: The Wizard includes George Kosturos, Jon Voight, William Fichtner, Lia Marie Johnson and Kevin G. Schmidt.

How long is American Wrestler: The Wizard?

American Wrestler: The Wizard runs for 117 minutes, or 1h57.

Where can I watch American Wrestler: The Wizard?

American Wrestler: The Wizard is available on Looke, Paramount Plus, Looke Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Amazon Channel and Paramount Plus Premium. Availability changes often: the list on this page is the most recent we received.