The Wrestler

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• Randy "The Ram" Robinson's uneasy relationship with his daughter Stephanie parallels that of real-life wrestler 'Jake The Snake Roberts' and his daughter, as chronicled on the documentary Beyond the Mat.
• Randy "The Ram" Robinson shares characteristics of the two biggest wrestling icons of the 1980s: Hulk Hogan and 'Randy Macho Man Savage'. The look of The Ram, with the long blonde hair and tremendous physique as well as the steroid use, is obviously Hoganesque, while the "Ram Jam" (a flying double forearm smash off the top rope) is inspired by Savage's "Flying Elbow" even down to the pose before executing it. The Ram's feud with "The Ayatollah" also mimics the feud that Hogan had with Khosrow Vaziri (aka "The Iron Sheik") that made him a venerable superstar and the face of 1980s and early 1990s wrestling.
• This movie, and Mickey Rourke's status as lead actor in it, was used in a story angle by the world's most well-known pro-wrestling company, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE, previously known as the World Wrestling Federation or WWF). The story angle reached its climax at The 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania (2009) (TV), where Rourke himself made an appearance at the event (not as a wrestler however).
• Movie Goof (continuity error): When Randy is sitting in his car telling Cassidy about his heart attack, his hair alternates from in front of his ear to behind in several shots.