Hulk Hogan documentary director gives inside look at filming polarizing figure

Hulk Hogan, undoubtedly the greatest wrestler in the company’s history, was booed in his last appearance in WWE.

On January 6, 2025, his last appearance, Hogan began outwardly supporting President Donald Trump, which turned off some of his followers.

“But he never expressed any regrets. He stood by who he was,” Brian Storkel, director of Netflix’s upcoming documentary about the late wrestler, said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.

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Hogan interviewed Netflix for a total of 25 hours over five days. However, he will not see the final product as he died in July at the age of 71.

Hogan had been involved in some controversies in the past long before he became an open supporter of Trump. But from the first moment, Storkel wanted to “humanize him and really get to know Terry Bollea, who is that person.”

“Because of all the subjects in my documentaries, I don’t like to see people in black and white. Even if someone has done wrong, I don’t see them as completely good or bad. People are more complex than that, and that nuance is where the story becomes interesting,” Storkel said. “You need a subject who is willing to go there, think and be open – and Terry was that.”

Hogan began to become more public about his support for Trump after the assassination attempt in July 2024.

“He said that he had silently supported him for a long time but was ashamed to wear the hat. He said that it was the assassination attempt that pushed him to speak out. Shortly after, he spoke publicly and faced some backlash for it,” Storkel said.

Professional entertainer and wrestler Hulk Hogan speaks during the final day of the Republican National Convention at Fiserv Forum. The last day of the RNC featured the opening speech of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. (IMAGN Syndication: USA TODAY)

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Ironically, the last time Storkel chatted with Hogan was right after he interviewed Trump for the documentary.

“I was in the White House, right outside the West Wing, having a phone conversation with Hulk Hogan, which was a very strange thing. It felt like one of those surreal moments you can imagine when you’re a kid – a made-up story you tell people. I had just spent time with Donald Trump, which was something Hulk Hogan had set up so I could interview him, and then I was standing there talking to Hogan about it. He was so excited for it to happen,” he recalled.

“At that point he was already in and out of the hospital after surgery, which was the last conversation I had with him.”

Following Hogan’s death, Storkel admitted in the documentary that not much had changed from his original plans, other than some late tributes and more time with his son Nick. Storkel was conducting interviews for the documentary at WWE headquarters in Connecticut the day Hogan died.

“There’s a moment in the film where I say we’ll be back in a few months for another interview. And he accepts it and walks out of the frame, and that’s the last time. It’s a powerful moment because you realize there will never be a sequel,” Storkel said.

But whatever the case, Storkel felt a responsibility to tell the story of the greatest.

Nick Hogan and Hulk Hogan at VH1 Big in ’05 – Backstage and Audience at Sony Studios in Los Angeles, California. (Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)

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“I want to be fair and accurate on every project. Of course I want the people involved to feel good about it, but I’m not going to change the truth to make that happen,” Storkel said. “With Hulk, knowing him personally made it even more important to honor him in the right way. Yes, he was flawed and polarizing, but he was also a caring person with a big personality.”

“I didn’t want his legacy to be reduced to a single label or judged solely on politics or past mistakes. My goal was to show the whole person. No matter how people feel when they walk in, I think they will have a deeper understanding of who he was. I really valued getting to know him, and I hope the audience will have the same experience through the documentary.”

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