How Did This Get Made? – No Holds Barred LIVE! w/ Thomas Lennon (HDTGM Matinee)

Date: August 19, 2025
Hosts: Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, Jason Mantzoukas
Special Guest: Thomas Lennon
Recorded Live at Largo, Los Angeles

Episode Overview

In this riotous live episode, the HDTGM crew (with guest Thomas Lennon) dive headfirst into the 1989 Hulk Hogan extravaganza "No Holds Barred." They gleefully unpack the bonkers world of 80s wrestling-cinema crossover, complete with villainous TV execs, check-mark eyebrows, crime-filled soul food restaurants, and a parade of truly questionable choices—both on- and off-screen. The panel's irreverent, insightful, and often delightfully R-rated banter makes for a rollicking breakdown of one of wrestling's most infamous film vehicles.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Hulk Hogan Cinematic Experience

• Opening Reactions: The panel’s stunned confusion and joy set the tone: “This movie boggled my mind, like, straight out of the gate. I did not know what was happening. And at the end of the movie, I did not care.” (John Gabrus, 03:41)
• Purchasing Regret: June bemoans owning it—”I had to buy this movie to watch it... I used my Amazon Prime membership to own this forever.” (June Diane Raphael, 03:59)

2. The Veiny, Growling World of No Holds Barred

• Physicality Over Dialogue: June and John riff on the film’s rampant growling: “There is no line that is not growled.” (June, 04:39)
  • “The lead actor in a film, his first sounds for the first five minutes are all just grunts and growl.” (Adam, 04:41)
• Zeus’ Minimalist Prose:
  • “‘Zeus’... And then the next thing he says, like in Act 3, when they need... He says ‘Zeus, don’t guess.’” (June, 04:44–04:56)
  • “Those are his only lines.” (John, 05:56)

3. Eyebrow Mysteries and 80s Visuals

• Tiny Lister’s Eyebrows:
  • “Did anyone understand the eyebrows were drawn on with pencil?” (Tom Lennon, 06:14)
  • “His eyebrows are legitimately a check mark.” (John, 06:26)

4. The Meta-Absurdity of the World

• Why Isn’t Hulk Playing ‘Hulk’?:
  • “For a million dollars, why did they not call his character Hulk Hogan?” (June, 09:12)
  • “His name Rip is very different than Hulk...He wanted to act.” (Tom Lennon/John, 09:59–10:01)
• Plot as Network TV Satire:
  • The crew notes the movie’s big theme: rival TV networks fighting over wrestling supremacy, with “World Television Network” as the rival everybody “wants to be number one.”

5. Highlight Performances & Setpieces

• Kurt Fuller’s Villainy:
  • “Unbelievable. Hats off.” (Tom Lennon, 16:39)
  • Sample of over-the-top lines and boardroom rants: “What’s his price? That’s what I want to know. What’s his price?” (John, 17:21)
  • “Take a leak.” (Kurt tells female exec, running joke, 18:10–18:23)
• Casual Murder as Plan B:
  • “The other thing is plan B in this movie is always murder.” (June, 28:49)
• Death Limo Scene: The panel marvels at the infamous “dookie” pants scene:
  • “What’s that smell?...It’s dookie!” (30:45)
• Hillbilly Bar/‘No Holds Barred’ Meaning Explored: Tom admits: “I had not heard the expression before...I now know what it means after watching the movie.” (45:16)

6. Hulk’s Hair, Body, and Sex Appeal

• The Hair Debate:
  • “He is a bald man. Why not just cut that...For a giant behemoth of a man, he has like, fine doll’s hair.” (Adam/John, 42:26–42:46)
• Joan Severance and "Panties":
  • “Her panties...just a really short mini skirt.” (June/Adam, 63:00–63:05)
  • “I think Hulkster saw her in regular panties and said it’s a family affair.” (June, 63:09)
• Sex Scene Awkwardness:
  • “Their first kiss is very anti-climatic. I was like, did I miss when they became a couple at four years?” (Adam, 71:17)

7. Critiquing (and Adoring) the Film’s Logic

• Casual Violence and Morality:
  • “So he kills Zeus, it seems like. Throws him through the stage...This whole movie is like a lynching, as far as I can tell.” (June, 80:11)
• Kurt Fuller's Evil for Ratings:
  • “Kurt Fuller, basically, everything he does in this movie to get a wrestling TV is a hundred times more fucked up than anything the Joker would do.” (June, 72:10)
• Philosophizing on Sports for Kids:
  • “Let’s take children out to a cornfield and make them wrestle against each other. Today you would go to prison for 50 years.” (June, 91:29)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Film’s Visual Aura:
  “This movie, just to give you guys an idea, if you have not seen it, Hulk Hogan is...Everyone is veiny and throbby in this movie.” — Adam, 04:36
• On Tiny Lister’s Eyebrows:
  “One is half an eyebrow, it connects to the other one. Full eyebrow. There is a check mark on this gentleman’s head.” — John, 06:26
• On Joan Severance:
  “She’s the kind of hot in a Playboy that when we were kids, you hoped you would find in the woods.” — John, 15:02
• On the Famously Bad “Dookie” Line: “What’s that smell?...It’s dookie!” — Hulk Hogan scene, 30:45 (panel loses it laughing)
• On Boardroom Toxicity:
  “Take a leak!” — Kurt Fuller, (running joke; 18:12 and many more)
• On ‘No Holds Barred’ Meaning:
  “I now know what it means after watching the movie. I had not heard the expression before.” — Tom Lennon, 45:16
• On the Final Fight’s Logic:
  “Why do you have to check the turnbuckles? They have no rules!” — Adam, 76:32

Audience Q&A Highlights

• Racial Representation in ‘Soul Food’ Scene:
  “I believe that scene in that place was to show, no, I am a defender of black people...It bummed me out so bad.” (June, 57:31–57:42)
• On the Sheet Scene in the Hotel:
  “They are separated by a sheet when they share a hotel room, and they provide an uplifting example for proper premarital behavior.” — Five-star Amazon review (Adam reading, 89:49)
• On Randy’s Actor:
  “Randy is played by Mark Pellegrino in this movie, who grows up to be Jacob from Lost.” — Audience member Kara, 86:19
• On Hulk and Joan Severance’s Sex Life:
  “Do we think they actually filmed a sex scene that was so terrible it had to be cut from the movie?” — Audience (86:22)

Fun Facts Revealed

• Hulk Hogan and Vince McMahon rewrote the script themselves over 72 hours (and much cocaine, presumably). (12:22)
• Joan Severance appeared in Playboy, influencing the panel’s adolescent crushes. (14:41)
• The movie cost $8 million to make, grossed $16 million—but only $5 million on opening against ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’. (81:54)
• The “Battle of the Tough Guys” was reportedly so absurd, real-life wrestler Tiny Lister (Zeus) tried and failed to parlay it into his actual WWF career. (79:42)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:41] – Initial reactions, movie buy-in regrets
• [04:39]–[06:42] – Growling, veiny physiques, and Zeus' dialogue
• [09:12] – Why ‘Rip,’ not ‘Hulk Hogan’?
• [13:00]–[19:00] – Kurt Fuller's show-stealing villainy, "Take a leak"
• [30:45]–[32:00] – Infamous “dookie” limo scene
• [45:16]–[46:15] – Explaining what “No Holds Barred” means
• [63:00]–[65:28] – The hotel room “panties and push-ups” scene
• [71:06] – The anti-climatic first (and only) rip/severance kiss
• [79:53]–[81:26] – Zeus/Kurt Fuller deaths and casual murder
• [91:03] – “Sports for Kids” charity absurdities
• [92:29] – Wrestling universe logic: does Rip exist alongside Hulk Hogan?

Podcast Tone & Style

The episode maintains HDTGM’s signature blend of affectionate mockery, wild digressions, and encyclopedic sidebars about 1980s and 90s pop culture. The live audience and Thomas Lennon’s riffing elevate the chaos. Expect R-rated language, nostalgia-laced tangents, and uproarious laughter throughout.

Final Thoughts

• Essentiality of Watching? “Definitely watch this movie. 100% watch it again and again.” – John Gabrus/Adam Pally (93:57)
• Would Tom show it to his kid? “Not in a hundred million years.” – Tom Lennon (94:07)

Summary:
The HDTGM team, with Tom Lennon, tears apart and celebrates "No Holds Barred," holding nothing back in a discussion as muscular, unhinged, and entertainingly messy as the movie itself. If you love epicly bad cinema and the joy of friends riffing live, this is a peak episode.

(Skip to timestamps above for favorite scenes or recurring gags; whole-group riffing and live audience energy make this a particularly lively listen!)