The world of wrestling is curious. Both masculine and intimate, the sport involves highly regulated hand to hand combat in which one wrestler tries to dominate his opponent and hold him down for a count of three.
After years of training, American millionaire John du Pont reached the limits of his physical ability well short of his coveted Olympic gold. Hoping to continue his involvement in the sport, the philanthropist used his vast family wealth to build an elaborate training facility on the ancestral Foxcatcher Farm where he housed a slew of elite wrestlers and coaches. But this sports utopia soon began to sour as John became increasingly paranoid and began to lose track of reality.
In the latest episode of Bloody FM’s Murder Made Fiction podcast, Jenn and Joe explore this strange story and the tragic murder of wrestler Dave Schultz. Jon Greenhalgh’s 2016 documentary follows the surprising trajectory of du Pont’s privileged life as it highlights the destruction of the American dream.
And if you want even more Murder Made Fiction, be sure to check out the pod’s Patreon feed, where Jenn and Joe have ~130 hours of coverage including a bear attack double feature with Grizzly Night and Cocaine Bear and discussions about the powerful documentaries The Perfect Neighbor, Predators, and Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke.