From one woman wrestler to another comes Lunatic: The Luna Vachon Story.
It’s the brainchild of (mostly) retired British Columbia wrestler Calamity Kate, who, by day is both a mom and a filmmaker.
Kroll’s documentary gets its world premiere on Saturday, March 29, 2025, as the closing film at the Canadian Film Fest in Toronto, at the Scotiabank Theatre Toronto.
“Electing to focus on this story was effortless as it’s one that holds an abundance of inspiration and plenty more that meets the eye. Exploring the life of a woman who has paved the way in a male-dominated industry, during a time where women were not seen as anything more than sex objects, instilled the drive to forge ahead with this project,” said Kroll in an email, adding that it was personal.
“I, myself, am one of those women whose life was changed as a result of Luna Vachon and the revolution she initiated. When not behind the camera, I am an accomplished pro-wrestler who has wrestled in five countries under the name Calamity Kate. I liked wrestling so much that I married my coach! I would not be where I am today if it wasn’t for her and others like her,” she said. Kroll is married to Steve Cvjetkovich, who wrestles as Kobra Kai; Steve’s brother is Nick Cvjetkovich, who was in WWE as Kizarny but is better known as Sinn Bodhi. Kroll and her husband also promote wrestling shows.
“As I dove deeper into Luna’s story, I quickly realized that this story was so much more than I anticipated — and it was about much more than wrestling! Vachon was a complex soul who wrestled many demons in her personal life including bipolarism, abuse, and addiction. She had thousands of fans yet she tragically died alone,” explained Kroll, who also was a burlesque dancer.
She realized it couldn’t be a “ra-ra, way to go women” story.
Instead, she Kroll sees it as “an in-depth look at motherhood, fame, mental health, passion, and addiction.”
“These are themes most of us can relate to — wrestling fan or not. These are issues that have even plagued my own family and hit very close to home. Luna’s story transcends the squared circle. It’s all of our stories.”
The film is not just a downer, assured Kroll. “There will be a lot of fun, upbeat moments in the film. Whether you give two hoots about wrestling or not, watching a larger-than-life character take a slam is fun! We all love a good fight scene and wrestling is the original action flick.”
The movie description:
The story of WWF villain, Luna Vachon. Raised by a family of wrestling legends, wrestling was her first love. Reaching the peak of her fame in the 90s, Luna’s biggest hurdle was challenging the mainstream wrestling industry and their view on women at that time She aimed to be the biggest, baddest wrestling villain that ever lived. But despite her successes, both her stage persona and reality started to blur. The guilt of abandoning her two sons to pursue her dream job, being diagnosed as bipolar, abuse, and addiction would prove too much. While the crowd yelled out ‘Lunatic’ to her in-ring heel character, little did they know a dark cloud of mental health struggles plagued her in real-life.
Other names behind the scenes will be familiar to wrestling film fans. Michael Paszt has written a few pieces for this website and was the director of the Vampiro documentary Nail in the Coffin from 2020. Pasha Patriki was involved with the Sweet Daddy Siki documentary and runs PurpleDOG Post. And SlamWrestling.net’s Producer, Greg Oliver, was an associate producer.
Among the names interviewed for Lunatic: The Luna Vachon Story are Vachon’s son Van Hurd, ex-husband Gangrel (Dave Heath), stepfather Paul “Butcher” Vachon, and colleagues Madusa, Penelope Paradise, Craig Cohen, Jacqueline, Kevin Sullivan, Billy Silverman, as well as fans and others who deal with bi-polar disorder, including AEW referee Aubrey Edwards. There’s some amazing footage of a young wrestler Angel Vachon, before she had truly become Luna.
Kroll can’t wait to show off her work.
“Ultimately, this documentary is a testament to the strength of women who refuse to fit in, in a man’s world, in a Barbie world; and for those who need reminding how badass they are,” she said. “Luna Vachon’s story and her contribution is an often forgotten part of Canadian History, and stories of kick-ass, inspiring women deserve to be told and shared with the world.”
No word yet on distribution beyond the film fest.
Order tickets at the Canadian Film Fest website.
RELATED LINKS
- Oct. 15, 2021: ‘Odd in a beautiful kind of way’: Luna Vachon’s life presented on ‘Dark Side of the Ring’
- Aug. 27, 2020: Mat Matters: Remembering Luna Vachon, 10 years gone
- Slam Wrestling’s Vachon Family story archive
