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There have been countless instances of WWE Superstars breaking character on TV or during interviews, over the years. In today's age of social media where everyone is connected at all times, keeping kayfabe alive and staying true to one's character at all times isn't an easy thing. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon is one guy who rarely breaks character, no matter what.
He has spent decades on end turning WWE into a global media conglomerate, and staying in character is just one of his qualities that have made him a revered figure. That's why when Vince McMahon breaks character, it becomes major news and is bound to make waves on social media. In the following slideshow, we will take a look at five instances when Vince McMahon broke character in WWE.
#5 Vince McMahon announces the arrival of The Attitude Era
Back in the 90s, there was a time when WWE was struggling against WCW Nitro every week. The WWE Universe was not impressed with WWE's cartoonish angles and hokey characters. A big change was needed and Vince McMahon finally decided to give the fans what they want. On an episode of RAW on December 15, 1997, Vince McMahon made an announcement and addressed WWE fans in an out-of-character promo.
This promo officially kicked off what many would later dub as possibly the greatest era in sports-entertainment history. Here's a snippet from Vince McMahon's promo.
The WWF extends far beyond the strict confines of sports presentation into the wide-open environment of broad-based entertainment. We borrow from such program niches like soap operas like The Days Of Our Lives or music videos such as those on MTV, daytime talk shows like Jerry Springer and others, cartoons like The King Of The Hill on Fox, sitcoms like Seinfeld and other widely accepted forms of television entertainment.
Vince's iconic promo:
What followed was a regular dose of edgy programming, and it eventually helped WWE defeat WCW in the Monday Night Wars. Vince McMahon bought off WCW in March 2001, thus marking the end of The Attitude Era.
#4 Vince McMahon cancels his "Limo explosion" angle in light of the Benoit family tragedy
On June 25, 2007, police discovered the bodies of Chris Benoit, his wife, and their child at their home in Fayetteville, Georgia. Benoit had missed WWE's weekend events without any notice, and the company had informed the police about the same. He was scheduled to take on CM Punk for the ECW Title at the Night of Champions PPV. The upcoming edition of RAW was canceled and WWE instead presented a 3-hour tribute to Benoit.
The episode saw Vince McMahon coming out in an empty arena and announcing the tragic news. Vince added that WWE's original plans for the show were to advance the storyline where he was 'killed' in a limo explosion, but it had been canceled due to what happened in real life. Vince further stated that the show would be WWE's way to pay tribute to Benoit for his contributions to the business.
Immediately after the horrifying details of the tragedy came out, Vince McMahon cut another promo soon after and stated that Benoit won't be mentioned again on WWE TV, and that the night would mark the first step of the "healing process".
#3 Vince McMahon delivers a heartfelt speech mere days after the events of 9/11
On September 11, 2001, almost 3000 people were killed in a series of coordinated terrorist attacks on the USA. The world came to a standstill to mourn one of the biggest tragedies of modern times. Mere days later, Vince McMahon's WWE presented a special edition of SmackDown. The show was dedicated to the innocent people who had lost their lives during the attacks.
Vince McMahon's speech post 9/11:
Vince McMahon delivered a heartfelt speech at the beginning of the show. In storyline, Vince's company was at war with The Alliance, which was going to lead to a 5-on-5 Classic Survivor Series match at the namesake PPV. Vince, who was an integral part of this angle, didn't mention it one bit during the promo and put his entire focus on the real-life events that had occurred earlier that week. The Chairman's words were met with a loud chorus of cheers by an emotional audience, with several WWE Superstars shedding tears as well.
#2 Vince McMahon talks about The Undertaker in an
"out of character" interview
When one talks about The Undertaker, there's seldom any criticism for the WWE legend. The Phenom has been with WWE for three decades and is widely regarded as one of the greatest Superstars Vince McMahon's company has ever seen. Initially, no one had imagined that this over-the-top character could last as long as it did in WWE. The Undertaker's WrestleMania streak became the stuff of legends at one time and turned into a major selling point of The Show of Shows.
Vince McMahon was one of several wrestling personalities interviewed for the docu-series, "Undertaker: The Last Ride". The Chairman was completely out of character in this interview and whatever he stated came straight out of the real-life Vince McMahon, The Undertaker's best friend. Vince couldn't control his emotions while talking about The Undertaker and refused to speak when asked what The Deadman meant to WWE and him. This was an incredibly rare moment where we got to see Vince McMahon in an emotional state.
#1 Vince McMahon comes out at WrestleMania XX to thank the WWE Universe
WrestleMania XX was a milestone event, as it was the show's 20th version since Vince McMahon's promotion had presented the first WrestleMania in Madison Square Garden in 1985. Several major storylines were resolved at the event, with the most memorable one being Chris Benoit's decades-long journey to World Championship success. The final visual of WrestleMania XX saw two best friends, Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, hugging it out in the middle of the ring and celebrating their triumphs.
At one point during the show, Vince McMahon himself came out and addressed the WWE Universe. He thanked the fans for their support and for helping him turn WrestleMania into a major event. Vince also acknowledged WrestleMania's tagline of "Where it all begins... again", and left for the back. Vince McMahon was one of WWE's top heel over the past one year or so and had feuded with the likes of Stephanie McMahon and The Undertaker. His out-of-character speech was met with loud cheers by fans at MSG that night.
