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The Main Event (2020 film)

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The Main Event
Official release poster
Directed byJay Karas
Screenplay byLarry Postel
Jim Mahoney
Zach Lewis
Peter Hoare
Story byLarry Postel
Produced byRichard Lowell
Starring
CinematographyKarsten Gopinath
Edited byDan Schalk
Music byRupert Parkes
Animation byRichard Lowell
Production
company
Distributed byNetflix
Release date
  • April 10, 2020 (2020-04-10)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Main Event is a 2020 American sports comedy film directed by Jay Karas, from a screenplay by Larry Postel and starring Seth Carr, Tichina Arnold, Ken Marino and Adam Pally. It was released on April 10, 2020, by Netflix.

Plot

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11-year-old Leo dreams of being a successful WWE wrestler. His grandmother Denise supports his love of wrestling. Leo's dad, Steve and Denise send him off to school and he rides his bike, where he meets up with his friends. They get bullied by another boy, a teacher intervenes and sends them all to the principal.

After school, the bullies confront and chase him on their bikes, but Leo manages to hide inside a house holding an estate sale. Inside, Leo finds a box with a wrestling mask inside. He takes it home after the man in charge gives him permission. On TV, he sees an ad for an upcoming WWE competition. Later, Leo overhears how his mom left his dad. Also, his father needs to pay $20,000 for the mortgage to not lose the house.

Leo tries on the mask, discovering it transforms him: his voice deepens, he takes on a very strong personality and he has super strength. Doing a Google search, he finds the legend of the mask: only a genuinely deserving champion can use its powers.

Leo confronts his bullies, overpowering them using the mask. Erica, a girl he likes, is impressed and they become friends, but he is also punished and sent home from school. Donning the mask and alter ego “Kid Chaos”, Leo decides to audition for the competition. After defeating fellow competitor Smooth Operator in the semi-finals, he reaches the final, against famous wrestler Samson. Leo's fame begins to alienate his friends and Erica. He later realizes and confesses to Denise that he thought the mask would solve all of his problems, but things are only getting worse. Leo apologizes to his friends, and is forgiven.

Samson and his manager switch Leo's mask with a regular one. The competition begins, with Steve watching on TV. Samson is brutally beating Leo, when Leo realizes the mask is a fake. Steve rushes to the match. Leo climbs up the cage around the ring to avoid Samson. Realizing Samson is afraid of heights, he dares him to climb, causing him to pass out. Leo jumps down on him, officially winning the match.

Leo gets the $50,000 check and he asks them to pass the wrestling contract with NXT to Smooth, as he is only a kid. WWE tells Leo when he is older, there will be a place for him in the organization. Two weeks later, Leo is on the school wrestling team. He has gained self-confidence without the mask and has the opportunity to wrestle his bully with his dad cheering him on from the audience.

Cast

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Production

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In June 2019, it was announced that production on the film would begin that week in Vancouver.[2] Moreover, it was announced that Seth Carr, Tichina Arnold, Ken Marino and Adam Pally would star in the film, with professional wrestlers Kofi Kingston, The Miz, Sheamus, Otis, Mia Yim and commentators Renee Young and Corey Graves also appearing.[2]

Release

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The Main Event was released on April 10, 2020 by Netflix.[3]

Reception

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On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 30% based on 20 reviews, and an average rating of 4.9/10.[4] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 52 out of 100, based on 8 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[5]

References

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  1. ^ "In 'The Main Event,' a magical mask helps an 11-year-old boy topple the wrestling stars of the WWE". Los Angeles Daily News. April 9, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Seth Carr, Tichina Arnold, Adam Pally and Ken Marino Star Alongside WWE Superstars in Jay Karas' "The Main Event" for Netflix and WWE Studios". The Futon Critic. June 19, 2019. Archived from the original on May 28, 2020. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  3. ^ Lawler, Kelly (March 19, 2020). "Netflix: Everything coming (and disappearing) in April 2020 (including 'Matrix,' 'BlackAF')". USA Today. Archived from the original on March 19, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  4. ^ "The Main Event (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on 2020-07-27. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  5. ^ "The Main Event Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
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