Vince McMahon blasts Netflix documentary, ‘Mr. McMahon’

From Foxcatcher to The Iron Claw, there have been many wrestling true stories put to film. However, none has been so anticipated as the Netflix documentary, Mr. McMahon.

In an arena full of larger-than-life characters, Vince McMahon is the most colorful. The former CEO of the WWE revolutionized the sport of wrestling, and with that, came many scandals. While stars like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena were catapulted to Hollywood stardom, the WWE also became subject to myriad controversies and rumors, including widespread steroid use, exploitative treatment of performers, and the the recent scandal that removed McMahon from his high position. While his behavior had been tolerated for the decades he was in power, recent efforts to make working environments more comfortable, particularly surrounding sexual harassment and abuse, resulted in the details of McMahon’s many transgressions becoming public knowledge.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, former WWE employee, Janel Grant, raised accusations of sexual trafficking and battery against the famous figure. McMahon had a dismal reputation resulting from of his brutal treatment of women, but Grant’s allegations shocked even the most jaded. Though not detailed in the article, The Hollywood Reporter indicates harrowing subjects are discussed in the lawsuit.

McMahon has maintained his innocence, but his dismissal from TKO Group Holdings suggests the proof is in the pudding. Mr. McMahon presumably presented the opportunity for the former WWE CEO to tell his side of the story, but even in that regard, McMahon states that the documentary fell short.

What did McMahon say about Mr. McMahon?

“My name is not Vince,” McMahon says in the trailer for his self-titled documentary. “My name is Mr. McMahon.”

While the line between the two characters may be thin, that is essentially the point of the documentary. Wrestling is a sport of theatrics and performance. The athletes often play characters and different roles in order to tell a story. Vince McMahon was no different, yet the wrestling mogul was still dissatisfied with the final product of his documentary. Before the series aired, McMahon put out a statement (via The Hollywood Reporter) that expressed his disappointment with the docuseries.

“This doc falls short and takes the predictable path of conflating the ‘Mr. McMahon’ character with my true self, Vince. The title and promos alone make that evident.”

With this, McMahon implies that the Netflix documentary frames everything he did as the outrageous character he pretends to be, as the actions of who he really was as a person.

“A lot has been misrepresented or left out entirely in an effort to leave viewers intentionally confused. The producers use typical editing tricks with out of context footage and dated soundbites etc. to distort the viewers’ perception and support a deceptive narrative. In an attempt to further their misleading account, the producers use a lawsuit based on an affair I ended as evidence that I am, in fact, ‘Mr. McMahon.’”

McMahon ended the statement by urging viewers to have an “open mind” when viewing the documentary. It will be hard to make any sweeping judgments before the documentary has aired. Fans will have to wait until Netflix releases the documentary Mr. McMahon on September 25 to draw their own conclusions.