In 1977, the world met with one of bodybuilding’s most iconic personalities, Arnold Schwarzenegger. People saw the behind-the-scenes of a bodybuilding competition for the first time. With a rating of 7.3 on IMDB, the documentary is one of the highest-rated sports films of a time. The movie’s success gave way to the fitness craze in the 1980s and paved a path for Arnold into super-stardom.

But not all of what they showed in the documentary is the truth. The makers made some fabrications to the story to make it more appealing to the public and increase the film’s commercial success.

Arnold Schwarzenegger made a shocking revelation about the movie

The major part of the film’s story covers the rivalry between Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno. In 1974, Ferrigno made his first attempt at the Mr. Olympia title but finished second behind Arnold. The film captures the final three months of training before the big competition.

While the training and competition clips were real, not all stories were true. Schwarzenegger admitted some part of the movie was told in a way to increase the commercial success of the film. The bodybuilder-actor said, “The reality is, I made up a lot of this stuff because I felt like that’s the way you get attention.“

Adding to his statement, Arnold said, “I believe that the more sensationalistic that you are, and the more outrageous things that you say, the more you get quoted. The more you get into papers, and the more the sport of bodybuilding will get benefited. Because the more stories we will get about bodybuilding.” Hence, Arnold admitted to some parts of the film being nothing but a dramatic charade.

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He also revealed the filmmakers created an exaggerated version of Lou. Ferrigno had plans to work out at Gold’s gym, but the producers wanted him to work out in a dark and confined place. Even Lou’s father’s involvement in his son’s bodybuilding career was only for the cameras.

The impact of the film

After its release, the movie became an instant classic. It was a success at the box office and brought forth the sport of bodybuilding in a positive light. Ferrigno cashed in heavily while Arnold soon became a star.

Schwarzenegger became the talk of the town because of the film’s success. He acted as ‘Conan’ in the movie ‘Conan the Barbarian’ because of his charismatic on-screen presence. Incidentally, Pumping Iron released a few weeks before Arnold won the Golden Globe award for the best new actor for his role in the movie ‘Stay Hungry.’ Hence, adding to the demand of Arnold.

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Years after its initial release, the documentary continues to serve as an inspiration for many people looking to become professional bodybuilders. But these revelations may have slightly marred the film’s reputation.