No Holds Barred, Vince McMahon and Hulk Hogan’s infamously bad movie from the late ’80s, is available to stream for free on Tubi now (if you have nothing better to do). The former WWE chief is back in the spotlight thanks to Netflix’s Mr. McMahon , a documentary exploring his rise and fall in the wrestling industry – including allegations of sexual trafficking and assault that saw him step down from the company.
However, that isn’t necessarily the focus of the docu-series, with the first half of the six-part series chronicling how McMahon established the WWE as an entertainment powerhouse through cutthroat tactics, extraordinary foresight, and controversy. In his effort to capitalize on anything that could make money and prevent Hulk Hogan from pivoting to a Hollywood career, McMahon made him an offer: why not make a movie together? The result was No Holds Barred, an action movie starring Hogan as Rip Thomas, a heavyweight wrestling champion who enters a violent feud with the chief of a rival TV network (admittedly, that is a simplification – for your sake, trust me). It cost $8 million and grossed just $16 million at the box office.
“Hogan promised me that if the movie lost money he was gonna return his salary. I guess the check is still in the mail,” McMahon joked after its release. If its woeful performance in theaters wasn’t enough of a sign to stick to wrestling, its reviews sealed the movie’s fate.
It has a 10% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with a slight.