Satirist Munya Chawawa steps into the ring to trash-talk Donald Trump’s obsession with WrestleMania in a new documentary. The result is a bodyslam, according to one review.
Wrestling as Political Playbook
In his documentary, Wrestling With Trump, Munya Chawawa looks at how Trump and his team’s campaigns and style of government mirror the strategies of US pro-wrestling. Specifically, he highlights World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). WWE was founded by Vince McMahon and his since-estranged wife, Linda.
Chawawa’s documentary suggests that if the Democrats had recognised the strengths Trump was playing to, and the weaknesses he was preying upon, the world might be better today. Chawawa has been a wrestling fan since childhood. The documentary shows his box of action figures and his delight as he meets some of his heroes and reminisces with other devotees about WrestleMania.
Hyperbole, Smack Talk, and Kayfabe
The playbook pages most used by Trump and his people involve hyperbole, smack talk and kayfabe. Hyperbole and smack talk are evident in nearly every Trump utterance. Everything is the biggest and the best, unless it’s the worst.
The world is presented as divided into heroes (white Americans) and villains (non-American, non-white Americans). This division mirrors the “Babyfaces” (good guys who play by the rules) and “Heels” (who don’t) in wrestling.
The rhetoric, whether at a political rally or a wrestling match, is designed to inflame the crowd and rouse bloodlust. Trash talk offers catharsis for unspoken frustrations.
The Key to Trump’s Success
Kayfabe is presented as the key to Trump’s success. Kayfabe, in wrestling, is the pretense that everything is real. It suggests that the invective is unscripted, and that the Heels’ and heroes’ backstories are genuine.
Vince McMahon’s Exit from WWE
Vince McMahon resigned from various business roles in 2024. This followed allegations of sex trafficking and sexual assault, which he has vigorously denied. Linda McMahon is now the US secretary of education.
Chawawa is described as a genuinely useful guide to the phenomenon for the likely uninitiated viewer. He’s a convincing explicator of the Trump-wrestlemaniac thesis, and an excellent interviewer of people on both sides of it.
The documentary takes the idea that Trump’s campaigns and government mirror WWE’s playbook. It uses this idea, which is not new but is underused, to critique Trump.