Review: Kids comedy 'The Main Event' a WWE fantasy
11-year-old becomes a WWE Superstar in this thinly veiled piece of WWE self-promotion
Leo Thompson's bedroom is adorned with World Wrestling Entertainment posters on the walls, he sleeps in a bed fashioned after a wrestling ring and he goes to school in a Kofi Kingston T-shirt.
Before he leaves for the day, his grandmother asks him if they're gonna watch WWE "Raw" that night.
Leo eats, breathes and sleeps WWE. And so does "The Main Event," a scattershot, thinly written kiddie comedy that anybody over age 8 will see for the blatant piece of WWE self-promotion that it is.
Leo (Seth Carr) is an 11-year-old who's picked on at school by a group of generic bullies. At home, his father (Adam Pally) works two jobs to try and keep the mortgage payments up. They both live with Leo's grandmother ("Martin's" Tichina Arnold), who shares Leo's love of pro wrestling and supports his dream of becoming a WWE Superstar.
When Leo finds a magical wrestling mask, he slips it on and gains superpowers. He's still the same scrawny kid he was before, but he's given the gift of super strength, which he uses to enter himself in a contest to win $50,000 and a contract in WWE's development program, NXT. Soon, as Kid Kaos, he's mowing down opponents and becoming a big deal, but his success goes to his head and he forgets about his real friends.
"The Main Event" goes through all the expected beats and motions, and gives only the thinnest of explanations for or parameters of Leo's newfound abilities.
It's really just an excuse for a parade of WWE merchandising and cameos from its talent roster, including Kingston, the Miz, Keith Lee and Otis.
"The Main Event" is harmless, sure, but it's also completely disposable. By the final 3-count, it has already disappeared.
'The Main Event'
GRADE: C
Not rated: Flatulence
Running time: 104 minutes
On Netflix
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