WWE accused of promoting “racist trash” after Mr McMahon Netflix doc

Between the problematic storylines involving wrestlers such as Iron Sheik and Hulk Hogan to literal blackface scenes, the WWE is under fire for “racist trash” shown in the Netflix documentary Mr. McMahon. 

Although fans of the wrestling powerhouse were hoping for fresh insights into the controversial figure Vince McMahon and the sexual assault allegations against him, a majority of the new docuseries serves as a history of the WWE.

Within these episodes, it allows fans and non-fans alike to look back at the more problematic storylines that emerged in wrestling’s (or wrassling’s, should we say) heyday.

One of those involved Hossein Vaziri, aka The Iron Sheik. Various big names within the WWE – whose interviews were conducted before the allegations emerged – discuss how real-life politics were used to influence their storylines. 

The Iron Sheik vs nationalism

“The Iron Sheik was one of the most disliked individuals we’ve ever had as a heel in our company,” says McMahon. “Now, there was a lot of nationalism then. A lot of ‘rah, rah, America.’ And for years we had problems with Iran.”

Netflix

Cut between scenes of the crowds’ negative reactions to The Iron Sheik, longtime WWE employee Bruce Prichard discusses how characters such as this were figures for American audiences to direct their hatred towards.

“You look at what is happening, and you try and tell a story off of that and have people be able to react in a way that they couldn’t necessarily react in real life,” says Prichard. 

“You can’t find an Iranian sheik walking down the street that you can boo and hiss at and see him get beat up, but you could go to the wrestling matches and see it.”

In Episode 2, McMahon discusses how he drew from rising tensions between the US and Iraq to turn Robert Remus, aka Sergeant Slaughter, from a babyface (hero) into a heel (villain). 

While his character was previously portrayed as a “good American” veteran, in his new role he was brought out wearing a keffiyeh and declaring his support for the Iraqi government, claiming it was “brutal”.

Following the 1990 invasion of Kuwait and the political tensions that led to the Gulf War, McMahon and the then-WWF decided to pull this character as Remus started getting death threats in real life. 

WWE faces backlash from Mr. McMahon viewers

Aside from this, various problematic moments are shown, including scenes in which white wrestlers can be seen in blackface. In the Netflix documentary, McMahon claims that it was a sign of the times.

“​​It was a different time, different life, different set of values then. If it were done today? That would be a problem,” he says. 

However, after the release of Mr. McMahon, the WWE is facing backlash from a number of viewers. Taking to X/Twitter, one said, “Having a feud while a real-life war is happening is insane.”

Another replied, “Racist trash. As an Iranian American this and the way Iron Sheik was used made me never want to like McMahon and his racist ideas.”

Others turned their focus to Hulk Hogan, real name Terry Bollea. In 2015, the National Enquirer made a recording public of him using a racist slur while referring to his daughter’s love life and saying he’s “racist to a point.”

In Episode 2, it’s also revealed that Bollea told McMahon about the WWE wrestlers who were planning to create a union to protect themselves in the business. 

Netflix

“On the second episode of the new Vince McMahon doc on Netflix…. Bro Hulk Hogan also a f**king snitch not just a f**king racist,” said one. “Bro done snitched to McMahon on guys wanting to unionize the wrestlers.”

Another said, “Yo that #MrMcMahon documentary is all kinds of informative of the evil s**t Vince McMahon has done. Also f**k @HulkHogan for ruining so many possible careers just so his racist ass could stay on top of WWE.”

Former WWE writer’s lawsuit

Among the problematic moments in the WWE’s past, last year, former WWE writer Britney Abrahams filed a lawsuit against the WWE, as well as Vince McMahon, his daughter Stephanie, and other execs within the organization, citing racial discrimination. 

Netflix

According to the complaint, Abrahams accuses “discriminatory treatment, harassment, hostile work environment, wrongful termination, and unlawful retaliation… due to her race, color, and gender.”

Among those are allegations of racially insensitive storylines, including that employee Ryan Callahan pitched “a white Caucasian male wrestler with a ‘hunting’ gimmick would hunt a Black, male wrestler for fun.”

The filing also claims the “WWE forced wrestler Apollo Crews to speak with a Nigerian accent,” and Callahan suggested a secret for wrestler Mansoor could be that “he’s behind the 9/11 attacks.” 

It goes on to describe how Black writers allegedly faced pushback when questioning the problematic storylines. 

In 2021, it states “a Black female writer’s assistant was fired after reporting WWE lead writer, Callahan, for creating a racially hostile environment against African American employees.”

In October 2023, Abrahams agreed to dismiss the lawsuit, with Bloomberg Law reporting at the time that there was “no explanation for the dismissal.” But it’s one of many incidents that shines a light on McMahon’s empire.

Mr. McMahon is streaming on Netflix now. For more true crime news, read about where Jailbreak’s Casey White is now, the true crime stories the Monster creators could cover next, and whether smartschoolboy9 was ever arrested.