Vince McMahon Netflix documentary: What we learned about the longtime WWE promoter

Vince McMahon, the longtime CEO and chairman of WWE, is the greatest promoter in the history of professional wrestling. He has also been accused of sexual misconduct on several occasions.

The “Mr. The McMahon docuseries, which premiered on Netflix on Wednesday, covers all of that in six episodes, chronicling McMahon’s rise in pro wrestling through his exit from the business amid his legal troubles.

“Mr. “McMahon” is the character he has portrayed on television for years, but some argue that the 79-year-old McMahon is exactly that persona: a power-hungry boss who will do anything to stay on top.

In more than six hours of footage and interviews with McMahon (who canceled his final interviews after a lawsuit from former WWE employee Janel Grant came to light during filming), his family, former and current WWE wrestlers, critics and more: ” Mr. “McMahon” looks at the life of perhaps wrestling’s most polarizing figure.

The athleteChris Vannini and Jason Jones watched the entire documentary. Here’s what they thought.

What did you learn or discover after watching?

Vannini: If you know McMahon even cursorily, you’ll learn a lot. The docuseries touches on just about every well-known McMahon scandal dating back decades. It wasn’t just the well-known steroid trial of the 1990s or the double murder/suicide of Chris Benoit. This also included the Ring Boy scandal, which I didn’t know much about until a few years ago. It was about harassment allegations against WWE Hall of Famer Pat Patterson, who died in 2020. This included Rita Chatterton’s rape accusation against McMahon, all the publicly known details surrounding Grant’s current lawsuit and federal investigation, and much more. (In a lawsuit filed earlier this year, Grant accused McMahon and others of sex trafficking, physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault and negligence. In May, Grant agreed to stay her lawsuit after the Justice Department ordered her to do so pending a federal investigation was initiated).

You also see McMahon get introspective for the first time on camera. His interviews are by far the most interesting part, for better or worse. Until these documentaries, pretty much everything known about McMahon’s childhood came from a single Playboy interview from 2001 in which he discussed growing up in an abusive household. It was riveting to watch McMahon describe this situation and see how it seemed to lay the foundation for everything that would come in the future, from business to family to relationships and more. Longtime pro wrestling manager and promoter Paul Heyman describes McMahon as someone who spent his life trying to gather enough strength to always remain in control.

And that’s exactly what happened. Until he wasn’t anymore.

If you’re a hardcore wrestling fan, you might not learn much more. Apparently half of the documentaries are basic WWE history, covering topics like Hulkamania, the Montreal Screwjob, the Monday Night Wars between WWE and WCW, and other stories told thousands of times. But this is also for a casual audience.

Jones: I was a child during most of WWE’s rise to fame, and some of the early scandals didn’t register with me at the time. The candor of WWE Hall of Famer Tony Atlas, who spoke not only about Patterson but the treatment of women in general, was surprising, but it was a necessary part of the docuseries.

McMahon was thoughtful in his interviews in a way I had never seen before. What interested me most, however, were the father-son relationships explored, starting with McMahon talking about his own father.

Shane McMahon’s relationship with his father was fascinating. We hear Shane talk about how he wants Vince’s approval and how this is similar to the way Vince sought the same approval from his father. As a fan, I always wondered why Shane took so many risks in the ring. Being part of the McMahon family, it never seemed reasonable that he would be willing to be thrown out of the cages. But it was all about impressing Dad. Shane wanted to buy and run UFC to prove to his father that he should be the next to run the company. Vince refused and even said that if Shane wanted to buy the UFC, he should have used his own money.

It’s well known that Shane still didn’t end up running the family business, but it was intriguing that Shane didn’t want his sister Stephanie dating wrestler Paul “Triple H” Levesque while Vince supported it. Levesque is now WWE’s chief content officer, overseeing talent relations, weekly television product and more. Hearing Shane talk about why he left the company was new. Heyman tells a great story about a fight between Vince and Shane before the younger McMahon also left.

For all of Vince’s bravery, his feelings seemed genuinely hurt by Hulk Hogan’s departure to WCW. Hogan said he was forced to testify against McMahon in 1994, but that he went to a rival company hurt McMahon.

What was the most surprising thing?

Vannini: I’ve been really touched by pretty much everything involving Shane McMahon. You can tell that his relationship with his sons is intentionally much stronger than his relationship with Vince and the relationship Vince had with his own father. In the WrestleMania 32 docuseries, there is a scene where Shane hugs his sons after his match and Vince looks on. Vince and Shane then hug and Shane says it was one of the few times he got a real hug from his dad. The impact of the father-son relationship and the way the son deals with what he is given is a theme throughout the series. Apparently, Shane wanted to break the vicious circle of bad father-son relationships in the family.

It was also interesting to see how deeply they delved into succession planning – or lack thereof: why Shane left the company, what feelings he had when he came back, and why Vince didn’t pass it on to him. Atlas says Shane was too nice to be the boss. Maybe he was right. Or maybe that idea was the whole problem.

Jones: Benoit’s name hasn’t been heard on WWE television in more than 17 years. I didn’t expect Benoit to be mentioned by name, let alone Vince and other talent talking about him. WWE did everything they could to remove him from WWE media. You can still find his matches online, but not much else.

Mr. McMahon, which chronicles the rise and fall of the controversial WWE founder, premieres September 25th.

Featuring interviews from Vince McMahon before his retirement and some of the most famous names in wrestling. By Chris Smith, executive producer of Tiger King, and Bill Simmons. pic.twitter.com/DFYYRN1a9z

– Netflix (@netflix) September 5, 2024

What was the most disappointing aspect?

Vannini: I would have liked to see more reactions from wrestling stars to the recent allegations against McMahon.

Almost all of the interviews were conducted before news of Grant’s lawsuit broke in January. Interviews about alleged hush money payments and lawsuits come from the reporters involved, which is certainly a good thing. But you get the feeling that everyone said nice things about McMahon and held back their worst thoughts because they were still worried about the power he wielded. How do these people really feel when he no longer has that power?

The series also lays out pretty much all of the allegations in Grant’s lawsuit against McMahon. He is the focus of the series, but is only one of the defendants in the lawsuit. John Laurinaitis, another former WWE manager, and the company itself are also accused in the case. McMahon may be gone from WWE, but the story will be around for some time.

Jones: Nothing was actually said about Chyna (Joanie Lauer). This is the person Levesque was dating when he started working with Stephanie McMahon on screen, which led to their real-life relationship and marriage. The series is about women in the wrestling business and how they changed the industry, and that doesn’t happen without Chyna, who died of a drug overdose in 2016.

Throughout the series, many people refer to the elder McMahon as a father figure. I wanted to know more about it, beyond his actual children. Longtime WWE employee Bruce Prichard spoke about how McMahon made sure his wife received the best cancer treatment and praises him for keeping her alive after being given just four years to live more than 20 years ago became.

Mark Calaway (aka Undertaker) clearly adores McMahon. In the days leading up to the docuseries’ premiere, wrestling legend Mick Foley spoke of not wanting allegations to tarnish the good memories working for Vince created for many until all the facts are known. It’s clear that McMahon had a positive influence on many people. I just wanted to learn more about how and why to understand this loyalty.

Would you recommend it?

Vannini: Definitely. It seems pretty clear that when McMahon agreed, he thought this would be his memoir, where he could tell his stories his way and control the narrative like he always did in wrestling. But this series doesn’t sugarcoat his story. It brings you all the business success with all the personal conduct, and the two will forever be linked in the McMahon legacy.

Jones: Absolutely. Even without much discussion of the ongoing Grant lawsuit, there is much to learn. The McMahon family dynamic is worth seeing on its own. I wonder what would have happened if there had been one last meeting with McMahon. Given the pending litigation, this may be the last time we hear from McMahon outside of court.

(Photo by Vince McMahon: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)