Now streaming on Prime Video, “Unstoppable” tells the story of Anthony Robles, a boy born with only one leg who goes on to become a NCAA champion in wrestling. And yes, the movie is based on a true story.
In the film, Robles is played by Jharrel Jerome and his mother Judy is played by Jennifer Lopez. But these are indeed real people, who were even involved in the making of the film—Anthony Robles even did Jerome’s wrestling for him on screen—and who have seen the final product.
The thing about true stories is that sometimes only parts of it are true. Here’s what we know about the real Anthony Robles.
Was Anthony Robles really a high school all-star?
Yes, he was. The real Anthony Robles won two state wrestling championships when he left Mesa High School, going 96–0 in his junior and senior years combined. Robles also won a national championship as a senior.
In “Unstoppable,” we see Anthony climbing the “Rocky” steps in Philadelphia to get pumped for those championships, and according to Robles, it was something he actually did, not just a simple sports connection for the movie.
Did he really turn down a scholarship from Drexel?
Yes, he did. In the film, Anthony desperately wants to go to the University of Iowa to wrestle, but he is never recruited. It is based on facts. It is meant that he received a full scholarship from Drexel University, which his real mother encouraged him to take.
But in the end, Robles turned down the scholarship and went to Arizona State University, where he did not have a full ride. During his freshman year, he was redshirted on the wrestling team.
Did he really have an abusive stepfather?
Unfortunately, yes. Bobby Cannavale plays Anthony’s stepfather, who is emotionally abusive towards the family’s children, and eventually physically abusive towards Anthony’s mother. In the film, there is a decisive confrontation between the two, with Anthony using his wrestling skills to pin his stepfather until the police arrive.
That scene is partially fictionalized. As Robles explained to USA todaythe actual physicality of that scene is dramatized, but “Things were broken, the police were called, it happened.”
Has Arizona State really cut its wrestling program completely?
Yes, in short. During Robles’ first year, ASU’s athletic department shut down its wrestling program as part of budget cuts. Robles considered transferring, but the program, as in the film, was eventually reinstated.
Did Anthony really finish second the year before he won the NCAA Championship?
That part is not true. Although Anthony Robles went undefeated in his final wrestling season and beat the defending NCAA 125-pound champion, Iowa’s Matt McDonough, as shown in the film, the real Anthony did not place second the year before. In reality, he finished 7th in his weight class in the competition that year.
“Unstoppable” is now streaming on Prime Video.
