News flash: The WWE is scripted. It's one of the most well-known facts around the world and it's something that people who don't like wrestling use to constantly berate wrestling fans. It's a bit strange that argument, but that’s neither here nor there so we'll leave that for another day.
But, there are some instances where what's happening is so absolutely surreal that wrestling fans honestly have no idea if what they're witnessing is a scripted event or if it's the real thing. After all, there have been instances such as Jerry "The King” Lawler's on-air heart attack and The Montreal Screwjob incident.
Taking full advantage of this, the WWE has on multiple occasions blurred the line between a work and a shoot to generate a buzz and get fans invested in what's happening in front of their eyes.
So, without any further ado, here are 5 times WWE fans weren't sure if what they were seeing was scripted:
#5) Shawn Michaels collapsing in the ring
Back in 1995, Shawn Michaels was involved in an altercation in a bar where he ended up with a concussion when things turned ugly. When he turned up on Raw to face off against Owen Hart, things took a turn for the surreal.
For no apparent reason, The Heart Break Kid collapsed during the match against the younger Hart brother, prompting WWE medics to rush to the ring and the match was cut-off abruptly. In addition to all this, the commentary fell completely silent when this happened, adding to the tension of the scene.
Oh, and this collapse happened exactly at the time Sting was facing off against Hulk Hogan on WCW's Nitro during the Monday Night Wars. Coincidence, I'm sure.
It was revealed years later that this was actually all part of the show in order to help generate some much-needed sympathy for Michaels. It proved to be a masterstroke on the part of both HBK – who sold the spot to perfection and even suggested the idea of the commentators going quiet – and the WWE itself – as it helped elevate Michaels’ rising star.
Perfectly done.
#4) Matt Hardy returns to attack Edge
One of the worst instances of bad blood in the WWE involved Matt Hardy – then still unbroken – Edge and Lita. While Hardy and Lita were dating, the elder Hardy brother found texts on Lita's phone revealing that she was having an affair with his good friend, Edge.
The led to Hardy getting fired from the WWE as Vince McMahon was hell bent on making Edge the next big thing at the company. This was the catalyst for Edge's transformation into one of the most despised heels in the company and crowds constantly chanted for Matt Hardy when Edge and Lita were in the ring.
It was absolute chaos when one night on Raw, Hardy made an unexpected return without any pomp or circumstance to beat the hell out of Edge. As there was no news about Hardy's re-signing with the WWE this came as a massive shock to the WWE fans who were wondering if they were witnessing a real life feud unfold before them.
Soon it was revealed that Hardy had indeed re-signed with the WWE but for that first night, the fans had no idea what was really happening.
#3) Brock Lesnar elbows Randy Orton into oblivion
When the WWE started building up the hype for Randy Orton's return from injury in 2016, their trump card was to pit The Viper against The Beast, Brock Lesnar. A match-up that didn't really make much sense, it was the match to headline Summerslam 2016 for some inexplicable reason.
Despite this lacklustre decision making, the match ended in truly controversial fashion. Lesnar got his hands on Orton from the opening bell and proceeded to cut open The Viper's forehead with legit MMA-style elbows which left Orton in a bloody mess. Lesnar was then declared the winner by TKO.
While things like this were mostly known to be works, this one took everyone by surprise because The Beast was known to be a volatile element and it was unexpected that the company would let a top star like Orton get hurt so badly.
It apparently even took some other wrestlers by surprise as it led to a confrontation between Chris Jericho and Lesnar with Y2J demanding to know what was happening. An overall weird incident that didn't really have any pay off as both Orton and Lesnar were drafted to different shows at the WWE Draft after Summerslam.
#2) Chris Jericho punches Shawn Michaels' wife
Back in 2008, Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels were involved in the feud of the year as the heelish Jericho wanted to prove he was better than the babyfaced Heart Break Kid. The feud itself started with a pretty memorable segment where Y2J put Michaels head first through a TV inside the ring.
Things only escalated from that point and in order to add more heat on Jericho, Michaels and his wife suggested an angle where Jericho accidentally punched HBK's wife while aiming for The Showstopper.
Everything went fine except that Jericho's punch was a touch too strong and ended up giving Rebecca Michaels a busted lip which led to people wondering if this was an actual shoot as it was a higher level of male on female violence than was seen on TV.
Thankfully, it wasn't a very big deal as both Shawn and Rebecca laughed off the incident with Jericho backstage and there was never any heat between the two.
#1) The CM Punk pipebomb
The pipebomb promo is the stuff of legend today and is widely considered the moment that made CM Punk into the megastar he is today. I won't go into all the details of the explosive promo as it can be seen here:
While the things Punk said were indeed a shoot, he was given a green signal by the company to say whatever he felt like in order to build the feud between him and John Cena which was to culminate in Punk's hometown of Chicago.
It was an expert work that blended elements of a proper shoot promo but the fact of the matter is, it was still done with the WWE's approval. After all, if it wasn't, Punk would have had his microphone cut off well before it actually was.
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